The weakness in me
by Maloui
Summary: Dr. Arizona Robbins and Dr. Calliope Torres work at Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital. Both are involved with other people. But what happens if the two women suddenly start to develop feelings for the other?
1. Chapter 1

Dr. Arizona Robbins walked down to the entrance hall of Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital. Her shift was about to start and she already lacked caffeine. She was working on a pediatric paper for a new project she would like to proceed with and the deadline was coming awfully close. When she wasn't working her shifts, she was at her desk writing. Her work schedule alone she could handle but right now she had to buckle up and get through the next days of both work and paper.

Dr. Calliope Torres put her lab coat in her locker. She just wanted to grab something to eat while it was quiet in the orthopedic unit. She already had hours of working behind her and was starving. As a surgeon you learn to salvage each moment of peace and quiet you get. Besides that she really craved for a coffee. Handling the pre-boards phase every fifth year resident had to go through and working at the hospital paid its price. She almost never got a good night's sleep. At least boards were a couple of weeks away so it all would be over soon.

Callie was to meet Dr. Mark Sloan for lunch or dinner or whatever. Usual meal times didn't apply for surgeons. Mark and Callie were best friends and had an on and off affair. Mark had been kind and waited up so that they could have a bite to eat together. That too was something each surgeon was grateful for, not having to quickly eat something in a few minutes but really enjoy a nice meal with another human being.

In the staircase, Callie saw her colleague Arizona coming up the stairs. Callie smiled. It had been sometime since they had seen each other due to their work schedules and the lack of cases which made it necessary for ortho and peds to work together. Lately, Arizona was there mostly on the late shifts while Callie was there early. Their shifts overlapped only for a short amount of time.

"So I'm coming and you're leaving?" Arizona said and pretended to be sad but the smile which she couldn't hide gave her away.

"Just grabbing something to eat with Mark. I will be back later." Callie said and smiled as well.

* * *

So Callie and Mark had a burger and shared fries in a bistro across the street.

"I'm so sick of this hospital food." Callie said between bites.

"You tell me. It's nice having something in front of you of which you can tell what it really is."

"Remember that weird brown stuff from last week?" Callie asked.

"Don't remind me of that, Torres. That was just a disgusting pile of whatever it meant to be." Mark laughed and changed the subject before his friend could bring up more of that strange food they ate all day at the hospital. "So you and that blonde. What's going on with that?"

"Robbins?" Callie asked surprised.

"Of course her."

"What is there supposed to be going on?" She really had no idea what Mark was suggesting. Arizona and she were colleagues and shared a drink from time to time after shifts at Joe's across from the hospital.

"Come on, Torres. I saw you two in the hallway."

"Jealous?" Callie asked in concern. Mark and she were currently sleeping together – again. "And there is nothing going on." She quickly added.

"Me, jealous? I'm not the jealous type, you should know that by now."

"Just wondering, since we are currently doing… stuff."

Mark had one of his sexy smiles on his lips. "Stuff? That's what you're naming my magic?"

Callie laughed and leaned over to kiss Mark on the cheek. "Your ego is way too huge."

"Can you blame me? I mean, look at me." Mark sat up straight and presented himself.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Callie waved Mark's comments away. Mark was very sure of himself and he almost never missed an opportunity to prove that to the world. But deep down, Mark was a huge softie. Unfortunately, only a few people got to see that side of him. So Callie knew Mark would never admit to being jealous of Arizona Robbins but Callie knew that Mark cherished their friendship with benefits as much as she did. And she knew that they both weren't sleeping with anyone else when the two of them were back on their affair.

All in all lunch didn't take longer than about 45 minutes and each of them was back in their unit. Although Callie had patients, her mind was elsewhere. Mark's question about her and Robbins were bugging her. Callie kept replaying the scene in the hallways and maybe every other encounter the two had. She never had thought of her colleague that way. Callie liked seeing Arizona around and working with her on cases. Callie noticed that smiled when she met Arizona but that didn't have to mean anything. She didn't even know if Robbins was into women. Callie herself had experienced a short relationship with another woman, Dr. Erica Hahn. Hahn had been on the surgical team for a short time and specialized in cardiothoracic surgery. After a few months, Hahn hat left Seattle Grace to work someplace else which left Callie devastated and beginning an affair with Mark. But Robbins? There was no way, Robbins was into women and on top of that even single. Not that Callie was even interested anyway.

Sometime during the rest of her shift, Callie found herself taking the elevator to the pediatric floor. She didn't even know why and she sure as hell didn't know what she would say if Robbins was there and would ask what her business was on her floor.

When the elevator door opened, Arizona stood right in front of the elevator. "Hey, you."

"Um, hi." Callie was caught off guard and her heart started to race. She had hoped she just could catch a quick glimpse of Arizona in the hall and make sure there were no romantic thoughts what so ever. Actually meeting and talking to her was making her nervous. _Damn you, Mark!_

"What are you up to?" Arizona asked. "Consult?"

Callie took a deep breath. The question she had expected but also feared about.

"Well, I… um." She stuttered. She couldn't come up with a good explanation.

"Would coffee help you finding your words?" Arizona suggested. "I was going to grab a cup down in the cafeteria."

"Maybe." _Calliope Torres, pull yourself together._ "I mean, yes. Yes, I think it would." Callie replied with a grin on her face.

Callie and Arizona took the elevator in silence. Arizona wondered what was up. The Callie she knew had always a smile on her face and a joke on her lips. She had had that smile earlier when they had met in the hallway. Something was different now and Arizona had no clue what reason could be responsible for that. Arizona decided to let it slide. They didn't know each other well enough to ask that kind of questions.

Callie was searching for something to say to Arizona to beak the awkward silence. For her it was impossible to think of anything casual right now. What had Mark done to her? Everything had been perfectly fine. Now she was a nervous wreck.

Once they stood in front of the coffeemaker it was easier. Callie actually had something to break the ice.

"You know, every time this symbol pops up, I just say to myself "Okay, so no coffee today." Callie pointed on a symbol.

"You're kidding, right?" Arizona had to laugh. "You know there are people to ask around here?"

"No way!" Callie laughed as well. She knew she was being stupid with that whole coffeemaker thing.

"What do you want?" Arizona asked.

"Simple coffee please."

Arizona made Callie's coffee, poured a bit of milk into it.

"How…?" Callie wondered. They never had coffee together before so how would Arizona knew how she liked her coffee?

"I'm a good observer." Arizona winked at Callie. She definitely was.

Arizona made a coffee for herself and carried the tray over to the counter to pay.

Callie tried to keep her from paying but Arizona said "You're invited since I seemed to have taken your words back there in front of the elevator."

Callie didn't reply because she didn't know what to say. She sure could not just say that Arizona was right.

Together they took a quiet table in the corner and Callie's nervousness was gone once they sat down. Arizona and she were joking a lot and Callie didn't know what Mark was even talking about. There was no tension between the two women. It was just two colleagues having coffee. And Arizona was happy that Callie seemed to have her beautiful smile back.

Not long after that, Callie saw Mark entering the room and quickly looked away. She just hoped Mark wouldn't see her with Robbins. If he would, he would just pick up on his earlier comment. Seeing the two women laughing would only confirm his thoughts.

"Very frisky atmosphere around here." Mark stated when he walked by their table moments later and gave Callie a knowing smile.

"Join us." Arizona suggested and Callie's eyes went wide in shock. She was even more shocked when Mark gladly accepted and sat down at their table. She couldn't believe that guy and the fun he was getting from this. She would kill him for this.

For a while the three of them talked about general topics, nothing special and mostly medical. Arizona and Mark knew themselves through Callie so there was nothing weird about their conversation. About 10 minutes later Arizona's new intern Hillary showed up and asked for Arizona. Nobody around didn't really like Hillary because she was over the top with everything she did and it was getting on everybody's nerves. But Arizona was too nice to show, so she got up and walked a few steps away from the table to talk to her intern instead of just sending her away.

"Callie, I'm sorry but I need to check on a patient. Come find me later before you leave?" Arizona asked.

"I will." Callie nodded and blushed. Quickly she looked away.

Mark had a huge smile on his face and Callie softly punched him on the shoulder. "Shhh."

"You are into her." Mark stated.

"No, you made me think I am but I'm not. So stop acting like that, Mister!"

* * *

Callie tried to work after the short encounter in the cafeteria but she was only able to half-concentrate. All she could think about was Arizona. Luckily her shift was almost over and she just had to go through some charts and update them with today's events. After that she changed her clothes in the resident's lounge. She was so ready to go home and lie down for a bit before going back to her studying. But before she had to swing by the peds unit like she had promised to Arizona earlier. So for the second time today she took the elevator to the pediatric floor and just like the last time, Arizona was waiting right in front of the elevator when Callie was about to get out.

"We got to stop meeting like this." Arizona laughed and took a step back so that Callie could step off the elevator.

"It's just perfect timing, don't you think?" Callie laughed and stepped out of the elevator. "And by the way, you made me come up here before I leave, remember?"

"I… absolutely do."

"You totally forgot, didn't you?" Callie wasn't mad. It was stupid anyway. Why would she say goodbye to Arizona especially before ending her shift? She never did it with anyone in particular. And why would Arizona suddenly even liked her to?

"Maybe?" Arizona admitted. "I'm so sorry, Callie. I made you come here and then forgot."

"It's okay. Really." Callie smiled. "But since I'm here. Thanks again for the coffee."

"I'm sorry I had to leave earlier."

"Don't be. I know how it is. We can try again sometime."

"I would totally love that!" Arizona said enthusiastically. "And guess what. I went to check on the patient with Hillary, she came to see me about, and after I treated him, Hillary hugged me."

"She did what?" Callie said in disbelief. There was no way an intern would hug an attending – well unless they were sleeping together. _Wait, was Arizona sleeping with her? No, she wouldn't…_

"Yeah, right? I mean, what was she thinking? Hugging an attending and your boss just for saving a patient? "I just don't get her, you know?" _So much for sleeping with her._

"Yah, me neither. I just don't get along with her. I thought that maybe I would come around and change my opinion about her but it's not happening. Good thing, I have Grey on Ortho. She's no Ortho God, but its working out for now."

They were quiet for a few seconds.

"Maybe she wants to befriend you. Hillary, I mean." Callie then suggested.

"Nice try. You know that doesn't work with me that way."

"Yah, I know. Me neither." Callie agreed with Arizona.

"Hey, we never hugged after operating together." It was stupid to even mention it and Arizona didn't know why she had done it.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." _What was that all about?_ , Callie wondered. Was Arizona flirting with her? Did she want to be hugged by Callie? "So I think I'm really leaving now. I'm so tired and I really need to prep for my boards."

Callie took a step backwards but somehow she didn't want to leave. She really liked talking to Arizona today and she still wondered if Arizona really was flirting. She made a mental note to punch Mark really hard for messing with her head like that.

But Callie was curious as well, so she decided to be brave. Callie moved closer to Arizona who now had an irritated look on her face and was about to take a step back. Callie smiled to show Arizona that it was fine and opened her arms. At first Arizona didn't know what was going on but she went with it. She put her right arm around Callie and Callie put her arm around Arizona.

Callie had thought it would be one of these brief hugs for one or two seconds but instead Arizona put her cheek against Callie's and held her close for more than the expected two seconds. Time seemed to stop.

 _What is happening here?_ , Callie asked herself. This was definitely more than a brief good-bye hug between colleagues and it definitely _felt_ like more than that. Callie's heart was beating fast.

They released each other from the hug with a smile on their faces. _Arizona had a beautiful smile_ , Callie thought. _And beautiful blue eyes._

"Well that was unexpected." Arizona stated and took a step backwards.

"We should establish this around here." Callie said to hide the fact that she definitely wanted to hug Arizona again some time and to hide her nervousness.

"We definitely should." Arizona laughed. She too wanted to hold Callie again. "If we start, the others might follow." _This conversation doesn't even make sense_ , Arizona thought and mentally slapped herself.

"So have a quiet shift, okay?" Callie said. She was confused and her face must be in a deep red, at least that's what she thought. Callie wanted to leave before Arizona could pick up on it. Hell, she needed to get out of here, fast.

"I will." Arizona replied with a smile and shining blue eyes. "See you soon, Calliope."

When Callie arrived at home about 20 minutes later, all she had in mind was that beautiful smile and those beautiful blue eyes. _Calliope._ No one besides her parents ever called her like that. It was different coming from Arizona. She couldn't really place it but it had sounded cute somehow.

Callie was confused as hell by today's events. She didn't know what had just happened and she didn't know if it was because of what Mark had said or because she was beginning to like Arizona. Callie always had liked Arizona but never as more than a good colleague They never had shared any personal details with each other. Callie didn't even know if they were counting as friends. Maybe they did.

A song she had heard a few days ago on the radio came to Callie's mind:

 _"_ _It always starts out simple like a conversation. Before I know it, I'm lost in your illumination"._

Callie was lost, lost in Arizona. She didn't know what to think. She had spent the last 20 minutes to come to the conclusion that she had not felt the way she had because of what Mark had said about her and Arizona. The hug had caught Callie off guard. Of course she had initiated it but she had not expected something like that. Arizona had pulled Callie close, like really close considering that they were colleagues hugging for the first time. Callie could still Arizona's skin on her cheek. It had been soft and warm and to Callie it had felt incredible.

Callie had totally forgotten about Mark and that was bad. Callie wasn't supposed to feel like this. She was in this thing with Mark. It was an affair but she knew they were being exclusive while they slept with each other. And different from every other casual affair, Callie and Mark were best friends. Mark had been there for her when Erica left her nothing but devastated. This wasn't fair to Mark.

What was she even doing here? Callie decided to go to bed early and try to sleep it off before she could lose herself even more in the thought of liking Arizona Robbins.

* * *

Arizona was home hours after Callie had left the hospital. She had barely been able to make it through the rest of her shift without thinking about Callie's cheek against hers. Arizona went to her fridge and took out a cold beer. She let herself fall onto her sofa.

Arizona tried to replay the hug in her head but she found herself unable to remember it properly and in detail. She remembered Callie stepping closer towards her. Next thing she remembered was that their cheeks had touched. How that happened, Arizona couldn't explain. How that _felt_ , she really could remember. Arizona touched her cheek. She knew Callie was into women. Everybody knew about Erica and her and everybody knew about her and Mark.

The phone rang. Arizona took a quick look at the display to see who was calling. Leah. Crap.

"Hey." Arizona answered, trying to pull it together.

"Hey, Babe. I know you hust finished your shift and I Just wanted to check in before I head out to start mine."

"I just got home." Arizona answered simply. She just didn't have the energy to talk to her girlfriend right now.

"You okay?" Leah asked in concern.

Arizona rubbed her eyes. Arizona hated to lie to Leah. "Exhausting day at the hospital, that's it. Don't worry."

"Okay, so try to get some rest. Okay?"

"Yeah, I will. Thanks for calling. I love you." Arizona hung up before Leah could hear her crying. She didn't bother to wipe away her tears.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading the first chapter. Parts of it are based on a true story. The song Callie heart on the radio is "Hurt" by Lady Antebellum.  
**

 **Please leave a review and let me know what you think and if you like to read more.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you guys a lot for reading, following and reviewing. That's not what I expected at all. So really big thank you for your support!**

 **I will try to update on weekly basis but the next update has to take a little longer due to my vacation the next two weeks.**

 **Please enjoy reading and let me know what you think!**

* * *

Callie looked at the clock again. She had stopped counting on how many times she had done it before. She knew when Arizona's shift started and knowing that she would be around in the hospital in a couple of minutes, made Callie nervous. The possibility of running into her was making Callie's heart race. How was she supposed to react if they would eventually do run into each other? What she had felt yesterday was both incredible and scary. Callie still didn't know what to think or if Arizona had felt the same way but Callie had decided to see how it would go from here.

Next moment, Callie got paged 911 to the ER because of a huge car accident which was bringing in one trauma case after another. So there was absolutely no time to think about this thing with Arizona any further.

"Torres!" Dr. Owen Hunt shouted when Callie entered the ER. "Possible internal bleeding and an open fracture right here. Little guy went through the windshield. His mother put him in the front seat without putting the seatbelt on."

"Some people are just impossible." Callie said before getting a closer look on the boy's leg. "This looks bad but I think I will be able to fix it. Fortunately, I can only see some small pieces of glass which I can take out easily. The broken bone I can fix with some bone screws." Callie explained. "Someone page Robbins, please. She must be in any minute."

Callie hoped no one would pick up on the fact that she knew Arizona's schedule. A quick look around told her that everyone was concentrating on the patient. As much as Callie wanted to avoid Arizona, this kid needed a peds surgeon.

"Page Robbins again? This boy needs to go up to the OR fast." Callie said again because Arizona still wasn't there and she didn't know if she had been paged already.

"What do we got here, Calliope?" Arizona asked when she came into the trauma room a minute later.

"6-year-old with an open fracture on his right leg. Went through the windshield and hit the ground pretty hard. So there's some internal bleeding as well. His vitals are down. We need to act fast."

"Book an OR and page Bailey and Karev." Arizona said to a nurse. "Callie, can you fix his leg while we take care of the bleeding?"

"Yes, of course. I can fix his leg after you stopped the bleeding and his vital are stable. No problem. We can spare him a second surgery this way. There will be a lot of recovery this boy had to face nonetheless."

With a plan being made, they went to scrub while the boy was preped for the OR. Right there Callie wasn't even thinking about how to treat Arizona. She just knew how to. The two of them were just working like a team and that was the only thing that mattered right now. Callie allowed herself to smile for a second and took a quick look at Arizona who was scrubbing beside her.

"What are you so smiley about?" Arizona asked without looking up.

 _Crap, she noticed._ Callie decided that honesty would be best. "Just happy to have a case with you. Well, as happy as these circumstances allow."

Now Arizona had a smile on her face but didn't say anything. She just kept her focus on scrubbing to hide the fact she as well was glad she had a case which allowed her and Callie to work together. It had been sometime and Arizona always looked forward to safe a child with Callie.

"Ready to safe this little guy?" Arizona said when she was ready.

"Let's do it." Callie replied and went into the OR after Arizona.

Karev and Baily were right behind and assisted Arizona on repairing the bleed. Callie started on taking out the small glass pieces. The fix she would do when the others had done their work. It took longer than anticipated but eventually Arizona was able to fix the boy's bleeding. While Karev and Baily scrubbed out and went back to the ER, Arizona stayed and assisted Callie with the broken leg.

"You really don't have to stay, Arizona." Callie said. She didn't want to occupy her more than necessary. There definitely were enough patients in the ER but Karev could take care of the children if there were any and Bailey was a very good general surgeon if any operation would turn out as necessary. Having Arizona around to fix the leg was luxury and more than she could ask for.

"I like watching you fixing bones. I don't know why but somehow I find it magical."

"Well, that's not the word I would use for this mess but I guess, I am the Ortho God everybody is naming me." Callie laughed and Arizona joined in.

"You really are, Calliope."

There it was again. _Calliope._ Callie stopped for a moment and looked up. She looked right into Arizona's eyes and Callie swore Arizona was smiling although she wasn't able to see the lower half of her face. Arizona's blue eyes gave her away. There was some kind of sparkle. Quickly the both went back to focus on the little boy's leg.

After taking the boy into the recovery room, Arizona and Callie went back to the ER to check if there was anything they could do. Fortunately, the biggest mess was behind them. All emergencies were taken care of and interns and residents were taking care of minor injuries. It seemed like the other attendings were still in surgery or back in their units.

"Turns out the crash wasn't as messy as expected. Hunt is in OR 1 with Grey and Sloan and Avery in OR 2 with our boy's mother. The others have minor injuries and can be released after being stitched up."

"Is the mother okay?" Arizona asked.

"Haven't seen her chart but I hear her face is a bit messed up. The airbag had done some damage and there's also glass in her wounds. Mark said he will be able to keep damage to a minimum."

"That's good." Arizona nodded. "I can't believe how irresponsible some people are. If she just had put her son in the back seat…"

"I know…" Callie said, lost in her thoughts.

Arizona noticed and put her hand on Callie's shoulder. "Calliope, we've done everything and the boy will be fine." She said in a soft voice.

The feeling of Arizona's hand on her shoulder send calm into her body. It didn't make her nervous or anything. It calmed her down. Callie nodded barely noticeable.

"You've done a good job on him." Arizona said again because she sensed that Callie was still thinking about the boy they had just saved.

"I know, I know. That's not it." Callie explained. "People are so careless sometimes and others have to take the consequences. This little boy is so innocent and he already had to undergo major surgery because his mother didn't think twice before putting him in the car."

"Hey, where is all that coming from?" Arizona now looked directly at Callie with her hand on Callie's forearm. Arizona wondered what had gotten into the other woman. The boy was fine and his mother would be as well after the surgery. She hated to see her this upset.

"I don't know. I guess it's just one of these days." Callie shrugged. To be honest, she didn't know herself. Maybe she was just tired and therefore too emotional.

"Can I do something? I know your shift is over soon and I can ask Karev to cover for me. We could go out for drink?"

"No, I can't accept that, Arizona. I'll be fine. I'm just tired and when I am, I get overly emotional. I'm sorry."

"Let me know if you change your mind or if there's anything else I can do, okay?" Arizona smiled at Callie to let her know that she meant every word she said. She gave Callie's forearm a soft squeeze as well.

Just right then, Callie noticed Arizona had been touching her all along. Her heart started to beat a bit faster and a smile spread over her lips.

"And she smiles…" Arizona commented and replied with a smile.

"That's on you." Callie joked and touched Arizona's upper arm for a second to show her she was just joking and that she was really grateful for Arizona's support.

"Thank you."

Callie finished her shift without any major incidents and without seeing Arizona again. Both of them were busy with patients on their own floor and didn't have time to check on the other or even meet for coffee. At home, Callie allowed herself a short nap to shake off the feeling from earlier entirely. Arizona had done a pretty good job with her talk and her sparkling blue eyes and that irresistible smile. Just looking at her made Callie feel better. After her short nap, Callie really had to study.

Before heading home, Arizona went to check on the little boy she had operated on earlier with Callie. Arizona checked his chart and noticed that his vitals had been stable since the operation. That was a good sign. Right now he was fast asleep. Arizona was sure that he would be fine.

Home, Arizona took a shower and made herself a sandwich. Leah was having the night shift again, so Arizona was on her own again this night and she didn't mind. It was fine having to deal with only herself and thinking about Callie. Arizona was surprised how Callie's emotions had affected her today. With every other colleague she just would have exchanged some assuring talk and would have gone back to her patients. With Callie it had been different. Seeing her upset, had made her want to do something, cheer her up in anyway. She just had wanted to make her feel better because she couldn't have stood seeing her this way.

Lying in bed sometime later, Arizona decided to text Callie.

 **Hi Calliope, I hope you're feeling better. I went to check on the boy – his name is Daniel btw – and he's fine. We had a good safe there and I really enjoyed working with you :) Have a good night – Arizona**

Arizona pressed send and regretted it immediately. What was she thinking? They never texted. Why would she now? Arizona felt stupid and decided that turning off her phone and going to sleep would maybe miraculously make the fact that she had just texted Callie go away. Instead, her phone buzzed on her night stand.

 **Hi! Thanks for checking on him before leaving. Yes, I'm feeling better – thanks to your support :) – C**

Arizona smiled. Maybe it had not been so stupid to text Callie after all. Arizona sat up on her bed and put a pillow in her back before quickly typing an answer.

 **Really, I haven't done anything. Glad, you're feeling better.**

It didn't take long and Arizona's phone buzzed again.

 **Believe me, you've done just the right thing. You knew what I needed.**

Arizona sat absolutely still for a moment. Callie's text went right into her heart. This meant something. Arizona knew it. Callie had shown her vulnerable side today and Arizona had been there, willing to do anything Callie could possibly ask for.

 **How come you're not sleeping? Shouldn't you get some rest from all the work and studying?**

She needed to change the subject before things got to emotionally loaded tonight. More than it already was.

 **I napped when I came home but then I had to go through my cards – for the hundredth time in days…**

 **Maybe I can help you with the next round? ;)** Arizona offered and hoped that she wasn't going too far with it.

 **You would? That would be awesome!**

 _What have I done?,_ Arizona asked herself. She couldn't get through a shift without thinking about Callie and what she could possibly mean to her. How was she supposed to help her study for her boards properly? But now there was no taking it back, was it?

 **I have the early shift tomorrow and a free day after that. Then again the early shift. Let me know how you want to do it.**

 **How about 6 pm at my place tomorrow night? Do you like pizza?**

Third night in a row Arizona wouldn't see Leah and Arizona didn't even think twice before she typed her answer to Callie.

 **I love pizza! ;) 6 is fine.**

The two of them kept texting for a while before wishing the other a good night. It took a while for Arizona to fall asleep. There was definitely no way around meeting Callie in a private matter tomorrow anymore. She was going over Callie's place, have pizza and go through a pile of cards with symtoms and diseases. To Arizona it felt more like a date…

Arizona's morning shift was quiet. Followed by her intern Hillary and resident Dr. Alex Karev, Arizona first did rounds. Then she went to check the OR board to see that she only had scheduled an appendectomy at 11 for a 12-year-old girl named Lisa. This would take only about an hour if everything went fine. The appendectomy was an easy procedure and Arizona could have handed it over to Karev. But Lisa really liked her as her doctor and Arizona wanted to take care of the little girl herself. After the operation – which went fine - Arizona left Hillary with Karev so she could work on her paper in the library. Karev would cover peds until the end of their shift.

The real dilemma started when Arizona was standing in front of her closet in her underwear hours later, not knowing what to wear for tonight. Too fancy wasn't even in consideration but Arizona didn't want to appear with too casual clothes as well. She wanted to wear something Callie might like. Arizona finally went for tight black pants and a light grey shirt and a final look into the mirror told her that her decision wasn't a bad one. On her way out, Arizona took a bottle of red wine from her cabinet. Callie had not asked her to bring anything but she thought it would be nice to bring something. Wine was good and would lighten the mood in case there would be any tension.

Arizona found herself in front of Callie's door, her hand shaking and her heart racing. She felt like a teenager on her very first date ever. This was stupid, she told herself. _This is not a date! A study date, yes but not a romantic date._ Arizona heard a window open and the next moment she saw Callie's head.

"You wanna just stand there or are you coming upstairs?"

Arizona felt caught. How long had she been standing there?

Callie let her in and Arizona took the stairs. With each step hear heart started to beat faster until she thought it would jump right out of her chest. She knew it wasn't possible medically but it definitely felt like it would. Callie was expecting her at the door step.

"Hi." Arizona said with a smile. She quickly ran it through her mind: Hug or no hug? She was nervous and didn't know what to do. Last time had been some kind of a joke because of what intern Hillary had done. This situation here was different.

Fortunately Callie made that decision for her and stepped towards her and pulled her into a quick hug. Arizona closed her eyes. She smelled Callie's perfume and the sweet coconut sent of her hair. Arizona thought her knees would give in. This felt too good.

"I brought this." Arizona held up the bottle with one hand when Callie released her from the hug. She handed it over to Callie and followed her in. Callie's place wasn't too big put it was neat. Callie had made the best out of it and Arizona could absolutely picture Callie living here.

"Thanks. I just opened one before you came. So we safe this one for later, right?" Callie put the bottle onto the counter and lead Arizona to her living-room. Callie had placed some candles around the room, not many but one or two here and there. On the coffee table, Callie had arranged two wine glasses and some snacks. Arizona also saw the pile of cards they were supposed to go through. Arizona smiled because Callie had put some effort into this. Maybe this evening meant something to her as well.

"Please, sit down. You want something to drink?"

"Well, you said something about wine?" Arizona sat down on Callie's sofa.

"Coming right up. I hope you like white wine?"

"White is perfect." Callie took the two glasses and went into her kitchen.

Arizona took a quick look around. Callie obviously liked to read. There was a big shelf filled with books at one of the walls. There was also a picture of a woman and a man who seemed to be Callie's parents and one from years ago when Callie was little. She had been a beautiful and cute girl who had become a stunning woman.

Callie came back into the room and handed one glass to Arizona. Then she took the seat next to Arizona.

"Are you hungry yet?" She asked.

"Not that much. We can start with these if you want." Arizona picked up the cards.

"I don't exactly want to but I want to pass the boards and since you're offering."

"Well, that's why I'm here. So let's start." Arizona took a sip of wine and looked at the first card.

For the next two hours they went through card after card and Callie did great. She knew each answer; mostly she didn't even have to think before giving the answer. She was able to explain every procedure she would perform on the patient.

Arizona sighed and put the cards on the table. She leaned back, looking at Callie.

"You'll be awesome. I never have seen anyone more prepered than you are. And I mean it."

"Don't exaggerate!"

"Please, you know every answer. No patient would have died. You're the ortho goddess, Calliope." Arizona said with a smile and put her hand on Callie's knee to support her sentence. Callie replied with a smile.

"Thanks, Arizona. Sometimes I really doubt myself." Callie admitted and looked at her hands. Especially the last few weeks she had asked herself a lot if she was capable of doing her jobs, if she was capable to safe people's life. There was so much she didn't know.

"Don't. You're great. You're a good surgeon and an even better person."

"You are making me blush."

"Just telling the truth." Arizona helf up her hands in surrender and laughed. "So, pizza?"

Callie and Arizona ordered pizza and went through the rest of the cards while waiting for their food to arrive. Again, Callie passed with flying colors but this time Arizona didn't say anything because she didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable.

They ate their pizza with a glass of the red Arizona had brought. They had already finished the white during studying. After pizza, Callie put the plates into the sink and refilled Arizona's glass.

"You wanna get me drunk?" Arizona laughed.

"Maybe." Callie replied. "No, just kidding. You want something else?"

"No, just kidding myself. Wine is great." For proof, Arizona took a sip from her glass. "So you want to go through this again?" Arizona pointed at the cards.

"You're killing me." Callie knew she had to go through them again at one point but she rather liked to spend the rest of the evening with Arizona without studying.

"We don't have to. You did great the last time." Arizona assured. "Whatever you feel like doing."

"I don't think I can take this again today and I don't want to bore you out."

"I'm here to help but we can schedule for another session if you like." Arizona offered and kind of hoped Callie would say Yes because she really liked her study date.

"You would do this again?" Callie asked. "I really can't take any more of your time. You already gave me your free night."

"Calliope, stop. I totally would repeat this. I'm having a good time and on top of that, I get to help you."

"I'm having a good time as well. Let's just keep the rest of the evening study-free and meet for another round, okay?" Callie suggested.

Arizona accepted and leaned back on the sofa. Callie did as well, taking her glass with her and facing Arizona. She still couldn't believe she was just sitting here with the woman who made her feel all these feelings at once. To Callie's surprise this evening felt like they had done this so many times before. There was easiness in their conversation and the way they were able to act around each other. Callie fought the urge to put the loose strand of blond hair behind Arizona's ear and touch her cheek.

Callie and Arizona kept talking for hours about everything and nothing but it never went too personal. Eventually Arizona fell asleep on Callie's sofa while Callie just went to the bathroom for two minutes. When Callie came back into the room, she smiled by the sight of the beautiful blond asleep on her sofa. She took the half empty glass from the other woman's hand and put it on the coffee table. She spread out a blanket so Arizona wouldn't get cold and turned off the light.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry I kept you waiting so long. Work kept me busy after my vacation and I wasn't able to really write a lot. So this chapter is a bit shorter than the other two. I didn't want to wait any longer.**

 **I hope you enjoy this one.**

* * *

When Arizona woke up she was desortiented. She didn't know where she was. So she sat up and rubbed her eyes, hoping it would help her remember. Callie's apartment. That was where she was. Slowly it all came back to her. Studying with Callie, having pizza for dinner and talking half through the night. She must have fallen asleep at some point and she felt bad because staying the night had not been the plan. She felt like she had forced Callie into it because Callie was just too nice to wake her up and make her leave. And she felt bad because of Leah. Arizona had not thought about her for one minute last night. Instead she had just thought about the perfect evening she had been spending with a beautiful woman. Arizona hadn't even told Leah where she was and what her plans were.

"Good morning." Callie came to the living room. She was wearing comfort clothes and her hair was still a bit wet from the shower she took earlier when Arizona was still sleeping. Callie obviously felt comfortable with Arizona around.

"Morning." Arizona said shyly. She on jer side still wasn't comfortable and on top of that she felt like she did look like a mess. She just got up and didn't like that Callie was seeing her like this."I'm sorry I fell asleep on your sofa."

"Don't be. You want some breakfast?" Callie offered. She sensed that Arizona was not that comfortable. Callie understood. They weren't close enough for sleepovers and she knew that Arizona was thinking that she had forced herself on Callie. Callie felt different. In her opinion, Arizona had been welcome to stay since Callie had occupied her all evening and half through the night. Least she could have done was letting her stay after she had fallen asleep.

"I really don't want to occupy anymore of your time." Arizona tried as an excuse.

"Please, stay?" She really wanted her to.

Arizona considered for a while. She had been here longer than planned amd she really wanted to go home and take a shower and fresh clothes but staying here a bit longer for breakfast with Callie seemed nice as well. Callie seemed like she really wanted to stay.

"Okay, I'm staying for breakfast." Arizona combed through her hair with her fingers and hoped she would look presentable enough for breakfast with Callie.

"You can take a shower at my place if you want. I need a minute in the kitchen anyway." Csllie offered but Arizona declined. She wouldn't feel comfortable taking shower at Callie's. Somehow this felt both wrong and good at the same time already without the part of getting naked in Callie's bathroom. Arizona knew it was a bit stupid because there was nothing wrong about taking a shower behind a closed door at someone else's place but that was how she felt. She wouldn't get naked at Callie's place.

"Okay but you find fresh towels and a hair brush and what ever you need in my bathroom if you want to refresh yourself." Callie said with a smile.

"I accept _that_ offer. I look like a mess." Arizona said and laughed.

"I wouldn't go that far. You still look beautiful." Callie said before even thinking about it first. She bit her tongue and blushed. Of course she was thinking it but saying it was a whole different story. Arizona blushed as well. She never would have expected such a compliment. She never would have guessed that Callie saw her this way.

Instead of saying anything in return, Arizona smiled and locked eyes with Callie. _You're beautiful, too._ Arizona thought but didn't dare to say. Callie sure was beautiful with her long dark hair and her brown eyes. She had always liked women who looked like Callie and had a strong personality. Leah was completely different. She was blond with blue eyes and she wasn't as strong as Callie. She needed Arizona as support in her life while Callie was good on her own. Arizona closed her eyes for a second to stop comparing her girlfriend to Callie.

"I just need a minute." Arizona said and made her way to the bathroom.

"Take all the time you need. I'll be in the kitchen."

"This is nice." Callie said, a cup of coffee in her hands and toast and eggs in front of her.

"Breakfast?" Arizona looked up from her plate from which she picked up some scrambled eggs with her fork.

"Breakfast with someone else." Callie added. She missed sitting down at a table across from someone special in the mornings.

"You don't have breakfast with Mark?" Arizona knew they had a thing going on. Everyone knew. And Arizona expected them to do those kind if things – like having breakfast in the morning.

"Sometimes but not that often. You know how it is. Different shifts or waking up way to late to have a descent breakfast. It's basically coffee to go on our way over to the hospital."

"Yeah, I know. Leah and I were on opposite shifts for a week now. It really sucks." Then Arizona realized that Callie might not know who Leah was. "Sorry, Leah's my girlfriend." She quickly added.

Arizona studied Callie's face for any possible reaction but there was none. If Callie was surprised or shocked or whatever, she didn't show.

But there were emotions on Callie's side. First, she was surprised about the fact that Arizona was gay. She wouldn't have guessed it but now that she knew, Callie was kind of glad Arizona was.

Second, she was kind of hurt because she really liked Arizona and a girlfriend put an end to follow up on that. She once had broken up another couple because she had thought that she had found the love of her life. She had been left by the same guy months later because he had gone back to his ex girlfriend. Callie had sworn at that point, she would never do something like that again. So Arizona was off limits.

There was a moment of awkward silence. Neither Arizona nor Callie knew what to say. What they both knew was that there had been some kind of sparkle for days now. Especially last night after studying. It had been sometime since Arizona had experienced that kind of feeling. She had been with Leah for almost a year now. She missed the feeling of getting to know somone, of not knowing if the other person felt the same way.

For Callie the last time she had felt that way had been with Erica. It never had been like this with Mark. They had not started out that way. It had basically been sex right from the start without the butterflies and heart racing.

"So, about the second session… If you still want to do it…" Arizona began. She didn't know if Callie was up for it anymore since Arizona had destroyed whatever there had been growing between them.

"Are you kidding? Of course I want to. Well, unless you want out."

Arizona smiled. Maybe not everything was lost here. "I'm in. Just tell me when. I'm thinking this time we can meet at my place and I could cook something."

"You got a day off today and early tomorrow right?" Callie remembered.

"Right." Arizona confirmed, impressed that Callie remembered her schedule.

"So I think you should spend the day with you girlfriend since you werenon opposite shifts and you have the day off." Callie forced a smile. "We can do it tomorrow if it's okay with you."

"Sounds good to me. So allergies? Vegetarian?"

"What?" Callie was confused for a moment.

"Dinner, remember?" Arizona helped out.

"Oh, yeah, right. No, none of that. Whatever you think of is fine." This time Callie's smile was honest. She didn't even know if Arizona could cook but it didn't matter to her. Worst case, they would order pizza again.

"Great. I'm looking forward to it."

"Me, too." Callie was still smiling although she was confused about the mixed signals she was getting from Arizona.

"Well, I should be going. You got stuff to do, right? And I need to get to Leah."

"Yeah, right." Callie wished for Arizona to stay but she knew Arizona was right and that it was the right thing to do. Callie had to study and Arizona needed to see her girlfriend.

"Thanks again for breakfast, Calliope."

"It was my pleasure. So see you tomorrow at 7?"

"That's right!" Arizona gave Callie one of her beautiful smiles before heading out of the door.

* * *

Callie was still looking at the closed door through which Arizona had left moments ago. She was stunned by everything she felt right now. What had happened in the last few days had turned her world upside down. A few days ago she had been perfectly happy with her being friends with benefits with Mark. Now she didn't know anything anymore. Until last night, Callie had thought that Mark was being stupid when he talked about her and Arizona and something about chemistry.

Then she had been nervous as hell before her evening with Arizona. No one was nervous before an evening full of studying and pizza with a friend. No one. But Callie had been which meant that the evening might have been more than that. The evening itself had been great and Callie really had enjoyed Arizona's company. Studying with her had been less painful than all the hours she had spent studying on her own. The rest of the evening spoke for itself. There had been few people which whom Callie had been able to connect right away. She had felt free to talk about everything, free to be herself.

And Arizona? Well, the feeling Callie had gotten all evening was that Arizona might had felt the same way. Arizona had had a smile on her face almost the entire evening. There had been moments in their conversations when Arizona had put her hand on Callie's forearm or her knee just to support her words. Each time had sent Callie into an emotional overdrive.

But then Callie came to know that there was a girlfriend in the picture and everything had gone from bright to dark. All the happiness she had felt the evening before had vanished. On top of that, Callie couldn't make sense of Arizona's behavior if there was someone else in her life. Was she just being friendly?

Callie knew she had to talk to someone about this. She wouldn't be able to get any medical stuff into her head unless she got "the Arizona stuff" out. The only person she could think of was Mark. She needed her best friend so she texted him if he could come over. Mark had the late shift so he texted back that he would be there in 15.

"Jeez, what happened to you?" Mark asked after a long hug and seeing Callie's face. "Did the pretty blonde brush you off?"

"You want coffee?" Callie asked. "I need coffee." Callie didn't wait for an answer and filled her cup and then filled another one for Mark.

"Okay, what's going on?" Mark was now concerned and sat down on the sofa. He took the cup of coffee from Callie who sat down next to Mark.

"Okay, before I say anything… I just want to check if you're okay with me talking about some hot blonde woman while we're…"

Mark smiled. "So you _do_ think she's hot. I knew it!"

"I'm serious, Mark."

"So am I. You and I, we're involved and I don't want to hurt your feelings."

"C'mon. We both know that we're having some fun here and the deal is that if something real comes along we support the other, right?"

"Right."

"And by the look on your face, something came along your way."

Callie was quiet.

"Okay, look. I really like being with you, Callie. But you're making this into more than it really is. You can't break my hurt here. I love you and I'll be always there to support you." Mark pulled Callie into a quick hug with one arm and placed a kiss on Callie's head.

"I love you, too." Callie replied.

"So, you gonna talk to me now?"

Callie nodded and poured her heart out.

* * *

Arizona came home to huge surprise. When she opened the door she found rose paddles on the floor, like a lot of them. There were some candles as well but not yet lit. Arizona made a few steps into her apartment and to the main room. On her table was a huge vase with roses. For a second Arizona thought Leah would propose. Arizona turned and saw groceries on the counter. But where was Leah? Arizona took off her coat and threw it on the chair. She went to the kitchen counter and started to unpack the groceries while being lost in her thoughts about that beautiful Latina she had spent the last 12 hours with.

Suddenly Arizona felt arms being wrapped around her from behind. A kiss was placed on her neck.

"Hey, babe." Leah welcomed her girlfriend.

"Hi." Arizona said and leaned back her head. She put her hands on Leah's arms.

"So where have _you_ been?" Leah asked.

For a moment Arizona thought about lying to Leah but then decided otherwise. "I was at Callie's. I helped her study for her boards last night and I kind of fell asleep on Callie's sofa."

"You're just too good to everybody, aren't you?" Leah turned Arizona around and gave her a quick kiss.

"What is all this?" Arizona asked although she was a bit afraid of the answer Leah might give her. She wasn't ready to be proposed to.

"We finally have a day for ourselves and I thought I make it special."

"So you wanted to set my kitchen on fire?" Arizona laughed. "I know you can't cook."

"Maybe we can cook something together?"

"I'm just messing with you." Arizona said and placed a passionate kiss on Leah's lips. "I love your surprise."

Without saying anything else Arizona pulled her girlfriend into the bedroom and closed the door behind them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for all the reviews and following my story!**

 **I know you guys are not a fan of the Arizona-Leah relationship and I promise you that there will be an end to it. But for now we got to stick with it.**

* * *

Arizona tip toed to her bathroom and into the shower. She turned on the water and let it run down her back. Arizona and Leah had spent almost the entire day in bed, sleeping with each other, talking and laughing until they fell asleep at some point. Arizona was really happy to finally have an entire day with her girlfriend. She couldn't even remember when had been the last time they had shared some quality time just the two of them for more than a few hours.

Arizona hadn't thought about Callie since leaving her apartment but right now as hot water ran down her back the beautiful woman was back on her mind. Why was that? If Arizona took a look at her relationship and the day she had just spent, there was no reason on earth to think about another woman the way she was. Sure, her relationship with Leah wasn't always perfect and the schedule of a second year resident was a lot crazier than her's as an attending. But all in all, there was no reason for Arizona to complain.

And yet, Callie was able to make her feel like a fool. Not in a bad way but in this having a crush on a cute girl way. Arizona closed her eyes and let her head rest against the wall. This was just crazy and confusing to her. She recapped the last few days and especially yesterday's evening and wondered what the hell was happening. Callie was able to make her knees weak and her heart race just by smiling at her. When ever she saw Callie in the hospital hallways, her mood lightened up. A day without seeing her was always a bad day and she immediately missed having the other woman around. Arizona wasn't sure if there ever had been anyone who had that effect on her. At least Leah didn't and never had in the past.

"Babe, you're okay in there?" Leah asked through the closed door which made Arizona realize how much time she must have spent in the shower since she had sneaked out of bed.

"Yeah, I'm gonna be out in a minute." Arizona answered and started to hurried up.

"I get started on cooking then." Leah suggested and Arizona heard Leah step away.

"Meet you in the kitchen!" She yelled after her hoping Leah would hear her.

Arizona quickly finished showering and wrapped herself in a towel. She could hear Leah working in the kitchen and humming to the sound being played on the radio. Arizona had to smile. Arizona had always loved just looking at her girlfriend working around the kitchen.

What was she even doing with Callie? Right there in the kitchen, there was all she needed. So Arizona shook of every thought of Callie and got ready to joined Leah in the kitchen before she could think about Callie any longer.

"There you are." Leah said and looked at her girlfriend while washing the asparagus. Arizona placed a quick kiss on Leah's cheek.

"What do you need me to do?" Arizona offered but she already knew that there would be no job for her. Leah seldomly let Arizona help.

"Well, I'm all set with this but I'm really thirsty." Leah smiled.

"Red or white?" Arizona read her girlfriend's mind.

"White? There's some in the fridge."

Arizona filled two glasses and placed one next to Leah. She took a sip from hers and watched her girlfriend cook for a while.

"So, everything is taken care of." Leah stated and took a step towards Arizona. She placed a kiss on her girlfriend's lips. "You think, you can make sure this doesn't burn? I want to take a shower too before we eat."

"As much as I want to join you in that shower, I think I can have an eye on this instead." Arizona smirked.

"You have to safe _that_ for desert." Leah laughed and went to the bathroom without turning around. She knew Arizona's gaze was following her every step.

Arizona kept an eye on the food, as promised and since Leah took her time in the shower, Arizona started to get everything ready for dinner.

"Dinner is ready!" She called for Leah after litting the last candle and starting to put their food on the plates.

Arizona and Leah then shared a nice dinner together. They shared a comfortable silence while eating. The food was too good to let it get cold because of too much talking.

Leah pushed her plate aside after eating the last bite. She looked at Arizona.

"Thank you for today. I know we barely have time together and today was perfect." Leah said.

"I have to thank you. This was your idea. Arizona replied.

"I'm glad you liked the surprise. I know you don't like them."

"Today was perfect." Arizona assured and stroked Leah's hand with her thumb.

"So you said something about desert?" She smirked.

Without saying anything Leah got up an held out her hand. Arizona took it and got up herself. She put her hands on Leah's hips and they met for a kiss.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Arizona pulled Leah into her bedroom, so Leah could keep her promise about desert.

* * *

While Arizona spent the day with her girlfriend, Callie was now home alone going through her cards. Mark had left about 2 hours ago after going through every detail of her and Arizona - not that there were many. Callie had told Mark everything that had happened and had not happened. Mark had finally come to the conclusion that there definitely was some chemistry between the two women. He had seen it with his own eyes several times at the hospital and from what he had heard from Callie's narration, Arizona saw something in his best friend as well. His advice was to not give up on anything if Callie really liked Arizona.

And Callie really did like Arizona. So she decided that Mark was right. There was no way that she had imagined the whole thing. Arizona had been flirty – for whatever that was worth now. Callie wouldn't pursue this actively but she wouldn't exactly stand down either. She would keep going and see what would come out of it.

And she loved Mark for encouraging her instead of persuing his own interests. He knew that if there ever was going to be something serious between Arizona and Callie, that would be the end of them being friends with benefits. Even now, just at the very beginning, Mark knew that his friendship to Callie was worth more than all the sex he could get. So he was willing to step down to just being best friends again.

* * *

So now that Callie got her head cleared, she made good progress with her cards. Time after time she went through them, she felt more confident about passing the boards. She was a good doctor every day and she knew she had the medical knowledge.

Unfortunately, Callie didn't have the day of like Arizona. So after finishing the last stack of cards, Callie made her way over to the hospital. She changed into her light blue scrubs and coat and made her way to the peds floor to check on the boy from the day before. It appeared that the boy was concious and currently with his father. He seemed fine under the given circumstances.

After that, Callie made her way to the Ortho unit to start her shift. For once it was a quiet day. There were no incomming traumas and she had only scheduled two minor surgeries which each didn't take much of her time. Callie was glad. With both working and studying she was happy about each and every quiet day.

Now it was Callie's turn to stand in front of a mirror not knowing what to wear. It was supposed to be a casual evening over at Arizona's place and Callie didn't want to show up overdressed. On the other hand, she wanted to look nice for Arizona. Callie decided on black pants, a dark green, almost turkoise shirt and her lether jacket. As a gift she could have brought wine but since Arizona had done the same thing when she had come over, she wanted to bring something different. Earlier on her way back from the hospital Callie had bought some beautiful bright flowers.

As the door to Arizona's apartment opened, Callie was greeted by one of the blonde's beautiful smiles. They locked eyes for a moment without saying anything. Callie was caught and unable to speak.

"Hi there. Come on in." The blonde said and cleared the way.

Arizona's apartment was bigger than Callie's. From the small entrence hall she was standing in, she could see 4 different doors. Arizona gave her a little tour.

"So these two doors go to the bedroom and bathroom." She said and pointed at the doors on the right.

"Here's the kitchen." Callie and Arizona's passed the door on the left.

Callie followed Arizona to the forth room. It appeared to be the biggest. There was a small dining table for four with a vase full of roses.

The other part of the room was the living-room with a small black sofa and a small glass table. There were some bookshelves as well. Mostly novels but Callie could see some medical books as well.

Callie turned around and realized that she was still holding the flowers. She held them out towards Arizona.

"These are for you." Callie said with a smile.

"Thank you." Arizona replied. "Let me just put them into water. Please sit. You can give me your jacket if you want to as well."

Callie took it off and handed it over. When Arizona left the room, Callie sat down on the sofa and let her eyes wander. The roses must be from Leah, she thought and swallowed.

On a sideboard she could see some frames with pictures. There was a photo of who seemed to be Arizona's parents. The man was wearing a dark blue marine uniform, the woman a fancy gown. So Arizona came from a military family. Callie didn't know before. Next to that frame was a picture of Arizona and a young handsome blonde man in a khaki combat uniform who looked a lot like the other Robbinses. Callie was surprised. She never knew Arizona had a brother. Arizona had never talked about him.

Callie now realized that she didn't know much about the blonde anyway.

And of course there was a photo of Arizona and Leah. It was taken on a beach, on some vacation Callie guessed. Callie now knew who Leah was. With all the interns at the hospital she didn't know everybody's name. But she definitely had seen Leah around before. The two of them looked happy in the picture.

Arizona came back and handed a glass of wine to Callie.

"Thanks."

"So, do you want to eat first?" Arizona asked.

"Honestly, I'm starving." Callie admitted with a smile.

"Alright. You like pasta? I make the best pasta sauce." Arizona said with a confident smirk.

"I love pasta!" Callie almost shouted. Italian was her favorite.

"It's settled then." Arizona replied and went to the kitchen. Callie followed her.

"You want me to help?" She offered.

"No it's fine. You're my guest." Arizona declined and began with taking pots and ingredients out. "But you can tell me how to treat me."

Callie was confused. She didn't know what the other woman was talking about.

"I'm a 42-year old woman of both good physical and mental health. I go running twice a day and eat healthy food." Arizona said and continued with a bunch of symptoms. Callie sat down at the kitchen table and began to explain her line of treatment.

"Very good. I think I'll live, Dr. Torres."

Callie smiled. This was way better than going through card after card. Arizona continued with the next patient. This time a 75-year old male. While Arizona was cooking, Callie explained every treatment she would perform on every patient Arizona impersonated.

"Seriously Callie, I have no doubt that you will pass the boards." Arizona said after the fifth round.

"Well thanks. But you'll never know, right?"

"Just be confident, okay? You can do this." Arizona smiled. "You'll do great."

Callie replied with a smile. Arizona knew how to make her feel better.

"Can you hand me two plates? They're in the cabinet over there." Callie did as asked and the next moment they were sitting at the table in the living-room eating the best pasta Callie had ever eaten.

"I have to admit. This is indeed the best pasta sauce. Where did you learn to cook like that?"

"I guess I just picked it up from helping my mom when I was little. I was always fascinated by how she cooked and so I was around the kitchen a lot. When I grew up she let me help and soon I was cooking the whole dish on her instructions."

"I'm glad you did. I really love this. Your mother must be a great cook."

"Do you cook?" Arizona asked in return.

"Not really. Just the basic stuff, nothing special. I'm way better at baking." Callie replied. "Ask my grandma. I make the greatest sand cake on earth."

They both laughed. "No, seriously. It may have started out with sand cake but I'm doing okay with real ingredients. I'll bake you something for your birthday."

"August 9th. Make a note." Arizona joked but hoped Callie would remember.

Together Callie and Arizona washed the dishes after finishing dinner. They then made themselves comfortable on the couch, a glass of wine in their hands. They agreed that they had done enough medical studying in the kitchen for the evening. The main reason was that they both wanted to spend the evening talking about everything but medicine. They both wanted to get to know the other better.

"You never told me you have a brother." Callie stated to begin a conversation, not knowing that this was probably the worst question she could've asked.

When Arizona didn't answer, Callie suspected that she probably had hit a soft spot. "Arizona?" She asked and reached out for her hand. Arizona pulled back. Her head was lowered.

"I'm sorry, Arizona. I didn't…"

"He died." Arizona whispered. Callie swallowed. If she had known, she never would have asked. She didn't know what to say. Instead she tried to reach for Arizona's hand again. This time Arizona didn't pull away, so Callie took Arizona's hand in hers.

Arizona looked up. "Tim, that is my brother's name. He was in the Army. Ranger Regiment." Arizona began. "It happened on his second tour in Iraq. They were on a regular patrol round when they were attacked by local militia. Their truck was hit and they barely made it back to camp."

Arizona sobbed. After all this years it was still hard for her. "Tim was injured badly. The situation in camp was chaotic. Another patrol had been hit. There were too many injured for the few doctors they had."

"God, I'm so sorry, Arizona. Really. I didn't know." Callie pulled her in for a comforting hug and rubbed her back.

"It's fine. How would you…"

"Thanks for telling me."

The two women spent the rest of the evening talking about themselves after that and Arizona's mood lightened up eventually. They talked about family, the past and why they became doctors. They were happy to get to know the other and it made them like the other woman even more. The whole evening Callie had the feeling of talking to a very good friend instead of someone she barely knew. She felt more than comfortable around Arizona and she hoped Arizona felt the same way around her.

"One last thing to cross of the list of personal topics, right?" Arizona said two hours later and looked at a confused Callie. "Coming out."

Callie blushed.

"You didn't come out to your parents yet?"

"I haven't exactly had a chance yet. The thing with Erica. Well, it was brief and I think it's best to do it if they can get to know a certain girlfriend when I come out to them. Maybe they will accept it this way."

"You sure about that? I think they will accept it either way."

"Well, you don't know my parents. My very catholic parents."

"Okay, it may be a good idea to wait. I see it." Arizona admitted. "Do your friends know? Mark seemed to."

"Yeah Mark does, obviously. I think pretty much the whole hospital knows since Erica and I broke up in the hallway of the cardio unit. You knew, didn't you?"

"Yes. I mean I heard some rumours. But I didn't care. I thpught that they should mind your own business. You being gay or whatever isn't theirs."

"Thanks. That's nice to hear. So how about you? How was it?"

"Unspectacular. They pretty much knew already when I brought home my first girlfriend. I never had brought home a guy before and there were posters of women in my room. My mom didn't make a big deal out of it and Tim thought it would be very cool that his sister would someday marry a chick."

"You dad?" Callie carefully asked.

"There was some screaming and crying at first but he came around eventually when he saw that it was what makes me happy." Arizona explained.

"You were lucky." Callie stated.

"I was and I'm sure it will work out for you as well."

"Thank you. Not only for encouraging me but for the whole evening. I had a great time."

"Me too." Arizona agreed. "You want another glass?"

As much as Callie wanted to stay, she knew it was better to call it a night. It was late and the wine had kicked in. She knew that nothing good would come out of staying.

"It's late. I should get going." Callie said and hoped that her voice didn't sound too sad.

Arizona nodded. "Okay then." She got up and picked up Callie's jacket from the other room. Back in the hallway she handed it to Callie.

"We should get coffee tomorrow at the hospital." Arizona suggested.

"Come find me when you craving for coffee, okay? I will make time."

"Great. So, good night then."

"Good night."

Arizona pulled Callie in for a hug, longer than it should have been. Feeling Arizona's body against hers made Callie's knees weak. She could stay in her arms forever.

When Callie pulled back, for a moment she thought Arizona would kiss her goodbye. Her face lingered in front of Callie's for a second. Then the moment was gone and Callie didn't even know if it had been real. She was confused.

"Good night." She said again quickly and left Arizona's apartment.


	5. Chapter 5

Arizona had always liked running for getting her mind off of something. It helped her forgetting for at least a while and that was exactly what she needed right now. Last night she had had a long talk with Leah who had wanted to talk about their future. At first Arizona had been confused because in her opinion everything had been great in the last few months. There had been no indication of anything being wrong.

Leah had applied for a surgical program in New York some time ago because she wasn't completely satisfied at Seattle Grace. It had been completely news to Arizona. Sure Leah had told her about things that had not gone well at the hospital but she had never had the feeling that it had been enough to start looking elsewhere and consider leaving. They had never talked about it up front and Arizona didn't know why Leah had kept it from her. Now that Leah had received her acceptance letter, she obviously had to tell Arizona because she was moving to the East coast soon.

Arizona had been shocked. About the fact that Leah had felt the need to keep quiet for so long and about her girlfriend moving to the other side of the country. Last night she had not been able to say much. There had been some screaming and a lot of crying until she had left Leah's apartment. They had agreed on talking in the next few days when Arizona had had some time to process everything. Home she had barely slept. For some time she had considered calling Callie but had decided against it at some point. The feelings she had for Callie -whatever they were and whatever they meant- kept her from making the call. She had not trusted herself with Callie at that state of mind. Eventually Arizona had fallen asleep early in the morning.

* * *

Now she was running for almost an hour but wasn't able to free her mind. She knew what Leah moving to New York meant. They both knew. They weren't made for a long distance relationship, especially one that contained 3000 miles between them. They would agree on trying because they were too afraid of ending it right away. Then, after a few months of not seeing each other and barely talking on the phone, they would break up because they couldn't take it anymore. Arizona didn't want it to end but what alternative was there? Arizona wouldn't leave Seattle. She liked it here, her friends were here and she had a job that she loved. She had nothing at New York. Arizona wouldn't make Leah stay just for her as much as Leah wouldn't make her come to New York.

On top of that there were these new feelings for Callie. At first Arizona thought she and Callie were becoming friends. They had been colleagues for a while but then they had started to meet outside of the hospital and talk about more personal stuff. That was what friends were doing, right? But then, Arizona had begun to have feelings friends weren't supposed to have for each other. Every day without seeing Callie at the hospital was a bad day. If they were too busy to at least have coffee or a drink over at Joe's after work, Arizona missed spending time with Callie. Every text she got from Callie, made her smile like a teenage girl who was in love for the first time in her life. Last week, when Callie had been over at her place, Arizona had been really close to kissing Callie. She knew it was wrong but somehow it just had felt right at the same time.

Her head was spinning. Arizona didn't know what to think anymore and she felt bad for not being able to shut down these feelings. Maybe because she didn't really want to. Callie was someome who didn't come around often. Maybe only just once in a lifetime. Callie was special and Arizona knew. The question was what was she going to do?

Home Arizona took a quick shower and got herself ready for work. Calling in sick was not an option. At the hospital Arizona had no chance to think about any of it. It was a busy day because a school bus had had an accident on its way to school. There were 12 injured kids at the age of 10 to 15. Luckily, they weren't injured too badly and Arizona and Owen had only to operate on one of them. After the operation when everybody had cleared the OR, Arizona sat on the floor in the scrub room, her back against the sink and her head between her knees. The operation had been a success, it wasn't that. But now that she had taken care of the last kid and the pressure fell from her, there was no energy left.

"You look like hell." A woman's voice said.

Arizona looked up and saw Callie in the doorway.

"Thanks." She said briefly and in a sarcastic tone and looked back at the floor.

"You okay?" Callie asked.

Arizona didn't answer. She didn't feel like talking right now. Callie got the sense of it and sat next to Arizona. She didn't say a word. She just sat there, pulling her knees close to her body.

For a while both women sat on the floor, beside each other and without talking. Arizona knew that Callie was offering the comfort she needed right now. But Arizona was too proud to admit that and too afraid of doing something stupid. So she kept sitting there and Callie went with it. If that was what Arizona wanted, that was what she was giving to her.

But then Callie felt Arizona's head on her shoulder. It made Callie smile. There definitely was a connection. Arizona had to give in. Callie was like a magnet. A magnet that kept pulling her and there was nothing she could do about it. Resting her head on the other woman's shoulder was giving her the comfort she needed. Feeling Callie's left arm wrapped around her made her feel at home. A tear fell down her cheek.

"You saved the boy right?" Callie dared to ask because she felt Arizona's breathing had calmed down.

Arizona didn't speak but nodded.

"You wanna tell me what's wrong then?" Callie asked in a soft voice.

"Just a messy day."

"You know you can talk to me, right?" Callie tried because she knew Arizona wasn't telling the whole truth. There was more and worse than just a messy day when Arizona who was cheerful most of the time, sat down on the floor crying.

"I do and I appreciate it." Arizona began. "But I can't right now."

Callie nodded. She got it and rubbed Arizona's back softly, hoping it might help. Talking wasn't always the best solutuon to every problem.

"Come on." Callie said after a while and got up. She had an idea and held out her hand. "Get up."

Arizona looked at Callie, confused. Her eyes said 'What the hell. Leave me alone' but she kept silent.

"I mean it. Get up." Callie insisted and pulled on Arizona's arm. Arizona couldn't resist anymore and took Callie's hand for help to get up.

"Follow me!" Callie led Arizona through the hospital hallways to the residents' lounge. Inside she locked the door behind her, causing an even more confused look on Arizona's face than before.

"Don't worry." Callie knew what it usually meant to look the door on an on-call room or the locker-room in this hospital but Callie wasn't here for cheering Arizona up by sleeping with her.

Callie went to get her iPod from her locker. She switched it on and selected one special song. "Here." Callie said and handed it over.

"Callie..." Arizona protested. What ever Callie was doing, Arizona wasn't in the mood. She just wanted to crawl into bed and wait for the day to pass.

"You got to dance it out."

"What?"

"I know, it sounds stupid. Cristina told me after the whole thing with George and Izzie and I was just as sceptical as you are now. But humor me, ok? Press play and dance with me."

"Fine." Arizona shrugged in disbelief but put in the ear plugs and pressed play anyway. She didn't knew the song and so she didn't know how to dance to it.

As Arizona pressed play, Callie began dancing although she couldn't hear the song. She knew it by heart and moved to rhythm of 'Little pieces' by Gomez. Arizona didn't move but soon she couldn't do anything but follow Callie's lead.

Both women danced for a while and Arizona indeed began to feel better. Callie thought she even saw a smile on the other woman's face. It worked.

"See? It helps." Callie said when Arizona stopped and sat on the bench in front of the lockers.

Instead of admitting Callie was right, Arizona opened up. "Leah is leaving."

"What do you mean 'leaving'?" Callie kneeled down in front of Arizona and put her hands on the other woman's knees.

"She got into a program on the East coast. New York."

"What? Why?" Callie asked but more to herself than Arizona. There was no answer. Arizona just lowered her head. She was at a lack of words. She didn't know why this was happening.

"When do you get off your shift?" Callie then asked, changing the subject.

"Two hours ago. Why?"

"Pack your things and meet me outside, will you? I'm taking you home for diner and then we can talk… or don't. Whatever you want." Callie made clear that this wasn't a question and Arizona therefore had no choice.

Arizona nodded and stood up. She pulled Callie in for a quick hug. She breathed in Callie's scent and all she wanted to do was break down in Callie's arms. It wasn't just about Leah anymore. Arizona wanted to feel Callie, to be with her and maybe even tell her everything. Instead, all she managed to say was "Thank you, Calliope."

* * *

Back at Callie's apartment, Arizona was taking a shower while Callie ordered some pizza – Arizona's favorite.

"You feel any better?" Callie asked when Arizona stepped out of the bathroom, her hair still a bit wet.

"I do actually. Thanks."

When the pizza came, the two women basically ate in silence because they were starved. While Callie cleared out the dishes afterwards, Arizona curled up on the couch under the blanket. Although Arizona had only been here once – including an overnight stay and breakfast the next morning, Arizona felt comfortable enough in Callie's apartment to make herself feel at home.

Callie took two glasses of white wine to the living room and said down beside her and pulled up her legs in a comfortable position.

"Crazy day, huh?" Callie tried but all Arizona replied was a mumbling sound.

"You wanna hear a total irrelevant story from my childhood?" Callie searched for a way to distract Arizona from all the dark thoughts she was having.

"Well, okay."

"So, I was about 4 or 5 years old when I went to the park with my grandfather. He wanted to do some fishing and I was happy to come along. I loved him and I took every chance being with him."

Callie took a pause and sip from her glass. Thinking of him, she really missed her grandfather.

"We weren't that lucky on the fish that afternoon. So we decided to go home and leave the fish in peace. On our way I spotted a mother duck sitting there with the most beautiful chestnut in front of her. Well, at least in a child's eyes it was."

Arizona laughed. She knew how kids where and she could totally imagine little Calliope Torres seeing the chestnut as a big treasure.

"So what happened?" Arizona asked curiously.

"What do you think? I tried to steal it!"

"Tried? You didn't get it?"

"Mommy duck bit me…"

Both women laughed at Callie's childhood war story.

They exchanged mostly funny but also some sad childhood stories for a while and the later it got, the more Arizona let herself get closer to Callie. At first she had rested her head on Callie's shoulder. A chance to put her arm around the other woman that Callie gladly accepted. This evening, Callie felt the connection between them. Even more than on the other occasions that they had spent time together.

Then, one thoughtless moment, Arizona took a pillow and placed it in Callie's lap. She then let her head fall into Callie's lap so that she could lie on the full length of the couch. Callie was surprised and didn't know where to put her hand but when Arizona fell back into a sad silence, Callie gently stroked Arizona's hair to make her feel better.

"What am I supposed to do?" Arizona asked, more to herself than to Callie. She didn't expect her to have the miracle solution to her problem. Callie didn't even know everything there was to the story.

"I really don't know. I wish I would though…"

Arizona sighed.

"Well, you could ask her to stay?"

"Yah, I'm not going to do that. I would feel bad for keeping her here when she doesn't really want to."

"Are you sure about that?" Callie couldn't believe it. Who wouldn't want to stay for a woman like Arizona. Callie herself would go wherever Arizona wanted to go if they were girlfriends.

"Leah not wanting to stay? She made that perfectly clear last night." Leah had said that she wouldn't let anything get in the way of her dream. There had not been any room for misunderstanding. So Arizona was just a bump in the road. Just drive around it and move on.

"You could go with her?" Callie suggested, knowing that it wasn't a good idea.

"Not going to do that either."

Callie patiently waited for an explanation.

"I like Seattle and I have a job I love. In New York, I have nothing. I'm not going to be a housewife."

"I get that." Callie did. She would feel the same way. Become a physician took too much to just toss it aside. She would do it for the love of her life though. But somehow, Callie got the feeling that Leah wasn't the One for Arizona and that Arizona already knew that.

"There's some…" Arizona began but stopped right away. Should she really tell Callie what was going on? There was no way that she imagined the connection the two of them had.

"What else is there?"

Arizona couldn't come up with a good enough lie. So she just went with the truth instead. "I like you." There, it was out. Arizona was too afraid of Callie's reaction, so she kept lying there facing the other side of the room.

"What?" Callie was sure she had heard right but had to ask anyway. There was no way Arizona really liked her.

With a pounding heart, Arizona sat up on the couch and faced Callie. "I like you, Calliope Torres."

"I don't know what to say." All sorts of emotions rushed through Callie's body. There were butterflies, actually there were a lot of them. She was happy because she liked Arizona back. But it was kind of sad as well because Arizona was with Leah – at least for now and that was what counted.

"Anything would be fine." Arizona said with a weak smile. She had been wrong. She had to be, right? Otherwise Callie would say it back.

"You're with Leah." It was all Callie managed to say. She had to say it because she wanted to kiss Arizona, badly. She needed to say it out loud as a reminder that it would be wrong to give in to her desire.

That not being the response Arizona had wished for, a tear fell on her cheek. Everything was going to hell and now she had lost her friend for being stupid and too emotional.

"Please don't cry." Callie pleaded. With her thumb she whiped away the single tear from Arizona's left cheek.

"I like you, too." She then whispered.


	6. Chapter 6

"You like me back?" Arizona asked, thinking it might be too good to be true.

Callie just nodded and lowered her head. There were some tears on her side now as well. This was just too overwhelming. She really liked this incredible and beautiful woman named Arizona and she actually liked her back. That was pure luck in Callie's eyes - if it weren't for the fact that Arizona was in a relationship.

"What do we do?" Arizona took Callie's hand. It was an honest question and she hoped that Callie would have the one and only answer to make all problems go away.

"I don't know." Callie answered. "I guess timing just sucks, right?"

Arizona shrugged. It was devastating. "Yah, right."

They were silent, both not knowing what to say.

Callie wanted to try. She wanted to see where this could go. Arizona was too special to just give up on her. But Callie knew she couldn't suggest breaking up with Leah. It was too much to ask. And what if she did ask and Arizona would break up with Leah for her and in the end it wasn't going to work out between her and Arizona?

Arizona on her side was torn. This long distance thing with Leah was bad enough. With everything that happened in the last 24 hours, Arizona couldn't just throw everything away, could she? Even if it was probably going to end anyway in a few months? Was she holding on to something that was maybe already gone? Regarding Callie, she had a feeling that it was more than Leah and her ever could be. What if Callie was the one great love every person got in life? The one you just don't let go that easily?

"We shouldn't rush this." Callie then said. It was the rational thing to do. Boards were next week and Callie had to focus on that. She had to be egoistic. If Arizona really liked her, she would understand. Besides that, nothing good comes out of impulsivity, Callie told herself. If they were pursuing their feelings, it had to be in the right way. Not in the "sleeping together and cheating on the girlfriend" kind of way.

"You're right. We shouldn't. We need to process." Arizona agreed. "I should probably go now."

As much as Callie didn't want her to leave, she also didn't see them coming back from this tonight. It was too much for one evening.

Callie accompanied Arizona to the door. Tears were filling her eyes again. "I don't want to loose you, Arizona."

"You won't, okay?" Truth was that Arizona was scared. She didn't know what the future held for them and if everything was going to work out for them.

* * *

After Arizona had left, Callie had the feeling of drowning in her feelings and her thoughts. She didn't know what to do. Timing really sucked. In 6 days she was going to take the most important test of her career and all she could think about was one particular blonde woman who had confessed her feelings tonight. Somehow it still seemed surreal.

There was a lot she wanted to tell Arizona about how she felt and how she even developed these feelings in the first place. But it wasn't the right time. Callie had to focus on her upcoming exam. She knew she was ready and could pass. She just had to keep her mind clear and her thoughts focused on medicine for the next few days. Callie needed to get rid of everything else. So she went to a drawer and pulled out pen and paper. She said down and started to write everything down she wanted to tell Arizona but couldn't right now. A lot of tears and nearly 3 pages later, Callie texted Mark to see if he could come over to talk her down.

* * *

Back at Arizona's place, Arizona and Teddy went over tonight's events. While Arizona briefly told Teddy what happened, Teddy's eyes grew wider. How could she have missed any of it?

"Seriously, Robbins?" Teddy asked when Arizona was done. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Arizona just shrugged. She didn't know how any of this could have happened.

"What do you need me to do?"

"Talk me out of it? Encourage me?"

"Okay, let's start from the beginning then." Teddy suggested. "Your relationship with Leah, besides this big secret she kept from you, how is your relationship going?"

"Wow, you dive just in. Okay, we have our ups and downs like every couple. You know how it is. As an intern she's spending a lot of time at the hospital. There are a lot of 48 hour-shifts and even if we are at the hospital at the same time, she's busy."

"If you ask me, it sounds like more downs than ups."

"I'm frustrated about the situation, yes. On the other hand, the time we actually spend together is great. I don't know…"

"Not thinking about New York right now. Just a basic question: Do you want to keep doing it the way you're doing it at the moment? First years of residency aren't all that different to internship. If the answer is No, you know what you have to do. If it's Yes..."

"I think it's No…" Arizona interrupted. "I just want to come home to someone who's actually there, you know? Someone who will hold me after a crazy workday. Someone who is present in my life and not just in and out." Realizing what she just said and what it meant, Arizona started to cry.

"My relationship is over isn't it?"

Teddy handed her a box of tissues. "You just answered that yourself."

Arizona nodded. She needed to talk to Leah and break up with her. It wasn't New York or Callie. That had just made her realize what she should have realized a whole lot earlier.

"So, now about Torres." Teddy moved on to the next point. "From what you told me, I get that you like her a lot. I don't really know her that well but we had a few cases together. She seems genuine and caring. And pardon me, she's hot, Robbins."

Arizona laughed. "You're into women now?"

"Can't I appreciate a nice looking body?"

"Just kidding."

"You think it could work with her? Like really work and not just the early days of butterflies and stuff. Like coming home to your cranky wife and fight about stupid little things with no meaning at all."

"I haven't really thought about it." Arizona admitted. "What I know is that it's easy with her. It's like I've known her for years. She just knows what I need in every possible situation. I don't know how but she does."

"It's because she likes you just as much as you like her. You do that for that special someone in your life. You toss your own feelings aside and do what's best for the other one, even if it hurts your own feelings. Imagine what it must have been like for her tonight: You showering at her place, you cuddling up to her on the couch, your head in her lap and she stroking your hair. It must've killed her, being so close without really being close. If you know what I mean."

Arizona of course hadn't known about Callie's feelings at the time. Now, she saw how incredibly selflessly Callie had taken care of her tonight. Nobody did that. Nobody.

"You see it now, don't you?"

"Yes, Teddy. I do. You think we could have a shot at really being together – happily?"

"I think you just have to try but from what I see, you two could be happy and not just for the early days."

* * *

 _Callie was at Arizona's place although it didn't look like Arizona's actual apartment. There were pictures of Arizona and Leah all over the place – happy pictures._

 _There were other people celebrating, colleagues and other friends of Arizona's. The apartment was pretty crowded and Callie barely saw anything of Arizona herself over the evening. Callie made conversation with the people she knew and with the people she had gotten to know that evening._

 _Whenever Callie saw Arizona, Arizona looked back at her. Sometimes there was a smile on her face of which Callie knew was only ment for her. One or two times when they passed each other in the room, their hands touched and made Callie's mind go in overload and her heart race fast. She almost couldn't stand being in the same room with Arizona without grabbing and kiss her._

 _"_ _We need to talk." Arizona said and pulled Callie's arm. Callie followed her to the guestroom and Arizona closed the door. Both of them didn't know what to say although Arizona had wanted to talk. Callie knew what about but she wouldn't be the one to start._

 _When Arizona kept quiet, Callie made a step towards her. Arizona didn't back away, so Callie made another step. She was really close to Arizona now and looked her in the eye. Arizona didn't look away. Callie leaned in and closed her eyes. When she didn't feel her lips meeting Arizona's, she opened her eyes. Arizona had made a step backwards._

 _"_ _Don't." She said briefly._

 _Callie was confused. There was no way she had made up all of tonight's tension. All the looks across the crowded room, the smiles. She knew it wasn't imagination._

 _"_ _I don't understand."_

 _"_ _I can't." Arizona began._

 _"_ _Arizona, please…" Callie begged._

 _"_ _Calliope, I can't because of Leah."_

Callie woke up sweating. The clock showed 4:30am. What the hell? She was irritated by the dream she just had had. It had been one of those dreams which felt so real that you didn't know what was dream and reality anymore. Her mind was all messed up and there was no possibility to regain sleep. Callie tossed and turned but wasn't able to fall back asleep. So she got up and went to work early.

* * *

The few days before the boards, Callie tried to keep her thoughts focused. She and Arizona were mostly avoiding each other. There were no off-work texts anymore, let alone any private time spend outside the hospital. At work they crossed paths a few times when needed but nothing more. Callie kept it professional and Arizona went with it although she didn't know if it was because of the exam or if it was just Callie walking away. Deep in her heart, she knew the latter wasn't reasonable. Callie wouldn't do that. She would at least have the guts to tell her.

The night before the exam, Arizona lay in bed facing the ceiling. Time after time, she picked up her phone, spun it around her fingers a couple of times and then placed it back on the night stand. She was torn between checking in with Callie and letting her be. She didn't want to mess her up right before this important step of any physician's career. Just when Arizona decided against texting for good, her phone beeped.

 **I'm totally freaking out…**

Arizona stared at the text for a while and inevitably she had to smile. It was still there, their connection. Despite the situation they were in, Callie still turned to her for help.

"Calliope." Arizona said in a soft voice when Callie picked up her call.

"Arizona. You didn't have to call."

"I wanted to." Arizona said it in a way that Callie could hear her smile.

"Hearing your voice calms me down though." Callie admitted boldly.

Arizona loved hearing those words, so much that she almost had to cry. That was how moved she was by Callie's words.

"You want me to quiz you again? Or tell you stupid stories to distract you?"

"Tell me about yours, please? Just so I can get an idea of how it will go down tomorrow." The whole medical thing she could handle. She had studied very hard for this day. What she didn't know was how it all would go. How many people would she face? How long would it take? When would the results be out?

For the next hour Arizona told the story of her exam day and answered every question Callie had about the course of action for the next day. Arizona noticed that Callie calmed down with every minute she was talking to her on the phone.

"You need to get some sleep now, Calliope." Arizona said after another hour of talking about anything but medicine.

"I guess I do." Callie agreed and yawned as if her answer needed some underlining. "Thanks for everything. It means a lot."

"Call me tomorrow when you're through, will you?"

"Of course, I will."

"Good night, Calliope."

"Good night." Callie replied and hung up.

Boards were excruciating, not just for Callie but for every resident that day. By the end of the day Callie was exhausted by all the questions she had to answer and all the procedures she had to explain. In the end she just wanted to go home and get some sleep.

Home, Callie jumped out of her clothes and into the shower. The warm water brought some energy back to her body. Now she was hungry on top of being tired. In her fridge she found basically nothing except of milk. Cereal it was then.

 **Back home, fed and tired.** Callie briefly wrote to Arizona to let her know. Results would be out before later that evening.

 **Thanks for the update. Get some rest.**

Callie took a long nap until her phone kept buzzing. Everyone seemed to have received their results. She quickly scanned through the texts the others had sent. There were no surprises. So Callie checked her own results and nearly fainted. This was it. She officially was a fellow of the American College of Surgeons!

Callie jumped out of bed and grabbed her keys. She didn't even bother changing her clothes. Standing in front of Arizona's apartment in sweatpants and a washed out hoodie made her regret her decision.

"Calliope?" Arizona answered the door after the third knock. She as well wore sweatpants and a shirt with a little panda on it. Her face showed a surprised look. She looked cute and Callie had to smile.

Instead of saying anything to explain why she showed up on Arizona's door step this late, she made two steps towards the other woman. Arizona didn't back away when Callie kissed her. It was a quick kiss but it made both women's knees get weak. It felt so incredible good to finally kiss each other although Callie hadn't planned it. She just had wanted to tell Arizona in person but when she had opened the door, Callie couldn't resist.

"I guess, this means good news?" Arizona asked with a smile.

With an even bigger smile Callie nodded. "I passed!"

"Congratulations!" Arizona almost shouted and pulled Callie into a tight hug. "I knew you could do it."

"Thank you for everything." It had been their study dates that gave her security in the end.

They were silent for some seconds before Callie was the first to talk.

"I'm sorry for the kiss. I didn't mean to. I just…"

Arizona softly touched Callies arm. "It's fine." Callie saw a smile on Arizona's face telling her that it was more than fine.

"You want to stay for a glass of wine?"

"I shouldn't. I just wanted to tell you in person. That's all."

Arizona nodded and Callie turned to the door. "Calliope?"

"Yes?" Callie turned back around.

"Are we okay?"

Callie went back to Arizona and touched her cheek to assure her that they were. Before leaving she placed a quick kiss on Arizona's left cheek and headed home.


	7. Chapter 7

**A lot of you asked if Leah was gone yet and I know you really want her gone. It was important to take it slow on this development. That's how I wanted to tell this story. It was important that Arizona realized she needed the break up and that's something that often doesn't come quickly. To answer you're questions: Leah was gone when Callie came over to Arizona's after the boards and when she kissed Arizona. Arizona just didn't have the right chance to tell Callie.**

* * *

The next day, Arizona and Callie got some coffee at the coffee cart in front of the hospital. They were busy with their OR schedules but agreed to at least have coffee in between surgeries.

"So I wondered… Some people are throwing me this small party tonight to celebrate me passing the boards. I wonder…" Callie was too nervous to actually ask.

"Of course I wanna come." Arizona helped.

"Really? Great!" Callie was happy. "It's at Meredith's. 7.30 pm. I'll text you the address later on."

"I'm looking forward to it." Arizona smiled. This would be her chance. This would be the night she would do it. "See you tonight then."

Meredith's and Derek's place was crowded with people. The small party turned out to be a huge party. Cristina and Meredith had invited almost every person Callie knew at the hospital. Callie looked around but Arizona wasn't here yet. She checked her watch. 7.55 pm.

"What are you watching the clock for?" Cristina asked. "You need a drink. Here take this." Cristina handed over a plastic cup with a gin tonic.

"It's nothing." Callie lied because she didn't want anybody to know she was waiting for Arizona especially. "And thanks." She held up her drink and took a sip afterwards.

"So tell me about it. Did they ask really great and interesting medical questions?" Cristina's eyes shone. She was looking forward to the exam and what came after passing the boards.

"You're crazy, you know that, right?" Callie asked and laughed.

"Yah, whatever. Tell me already."

So Callie spent the next 30 minutes telling Cristina about yesterday's exam and answering all of her questions. Cristina couldn't seem to wait to take it herself and show off her knowledge. The doorbell saved her from having to talk about it any longer.

"I'll get it!" Callie yelled and ran to the door before Cristina couldn't even say a word.

"I'm so sorry. I'm super late and I don't even have a gift." Arizona apologized truthfully and with the magic smile of hers. Her hair fell over her shoulders in loose curls. She was wearing tight black pants and a white loose top. Her black high heels made her taller than she actually was. To Callie she looked absolutely beautiful.

"You being here is all I need as a gift." Callie gave Arizona a quick hug and invited her in. "What do you wanna drink?"

"Whatever you're having."

"Gin tonic it is then. Go say Hello to the others. I'll be right there with your drink." Callie suggested and pointed to the living-room.

Both women were with the other guests for most of the evening. As much as they wanted to spend some time alone together, they knew there would be time later that night or at least tomorrow. Arizona really needed to spend some time with Callie now that boards were over.

Hours later when just the inner circle was left at the house, Arizona saw her chance.

"Can I steal Callie away for a bit?" Arizona politely asked the others who said yes. Teddy exchanged knowingly looks with Arizona and Arizona held out her hand to indicate that Callie should follow her. They didn't speak until they were outside on the front porch and seated on Meredith's childhood swing.

"Thanks for coming tonight. It meant a lot to me." Callie gave Arizona a heart melting smile to show that she meant what she had just said.

"I had a great time tonight with you and the others. We should do this more often."

They enjoyed a moment of comfortable silence and the other's company while Arizona searched for the right words to say what she wanted to tell Callie. She knew Callie could get the wrong idea and she wanted to prevent that from happening.

"So, there's something I need to talk to you about. I wanted to tell you for a few days now but I didn't want to distract you. I mean with boards and all." Arizona speeded through the sentences.

Callie noticed how incredible nervous Arizona was. "Hey, calm down. Don't be nervous. Whatever it is, you know you can talk to me." Callie took Arizona's hand to support what she had said. Whatever it was, Callie was sure that she could handle it. Maybe last night's kiss had been a mistake and Arizona had realized it by now. Maybe she wanted to stay friends, nothing more. If that was it, Callie would be heartbroken but she would survive. She would do anything to keep Arizona in her life even if it meant they would be nothing more than just friends.

"Okay, so... Leah and I broke up last week." Arizona quickly said to get it over with.

"You did what? I'm so sorry." Callie wasn't but it was the appropriate thing to say, wasn't it?

"To be clear, it's not because of you or us or whatever is going on here between us. Don't get me wrong but this break up, I should've done it some time ago. It wasn't working anymore before you and I started hanging out. If it ever really had..." Arizona further explained.

"Okay. Ehm… Well, I don't know what to say."

"How about you tell me what you really think instead of saying that you're sorry. Because I know you aren't." Arizona wasn't angry but she wanted to know what Callie was feeling.

"You see right through me, don't you?" Callie was a bit embarrassed that she had been caught in her lie.

"I admit I'm a bit happy about the decision you made. I'm sorry that I am but that's how it is." Callie said and continued "I'm happy that maybe I now have a chance to explore my feelings for you without being the one who breaks up a relationship."

"You know I can't jump right into the next serious relationship." Arizona had to be honest. She had to do this right. "I'm not saying no here, trust me. I have feelings for you. You know and felt that by now. I just don't want to rush it."

"I know and I completely understand. I just want to spend some time with you. Like we did in the past few weeks, only this time we can do it all without feeling bad. I want to get to know you better. Go on a date. We can take it as slow as we need it to be. There's no need for us to rush into this."

Arizona looked at Callie and scooted over so that there was no space left between them. Her knee touched Callie's leg and the touch sent a chill through her body. "You're amazing, Calliope." She simply said.

Callie noticed that Arizona's eyes were focused on her lips now and Callie couldn't help but look at Arizona's. She really wanted to kiss her, to taste her again. She had made the first step the night before and she didn't know if it was appropriate to do it again now. So she waited for Arizona to take lead while she barely couldn't resist the temptation. She shouldn't have to wait long. Arizona slowly leaned in and kissed Callie passionately while she kept one hand on Callie's neck. Both women had closed their eyes as they shared their first real meaningful kiss.

This kiss was different than the one from last night. Unlike yesterday, there was no insecurity left on Callie's side. She was sure of her own feelings for Arizona and the feelings the other woman had for her. She knew there was no one left to cheat on or to feel bad about or sorry for. Arizona was free and Callie would to anything to make win Arizona over once and for all. Arizona on her side was sure she had made the right decision. What she had just felt she had never felt with Leah, not once in their entire relationship. She knew Callie was the woman everyone dreamed to be with and yet she knew very few about her. What she knew made her fall hard for the other woman. She was looking forward to dating Calliope Torres. Maybe someday she would even marry that beautiful Latina.

"You realize all of our friends just saw that right?" Callie laughed and turned around to look through the living-room windows. Mark even gave her a thumbs-up sign but was then shut down by Derek who shrugged apologetically.

"They probably already knew anyway. I told Altman and I assume you talked to Mark who – if we're being honest - really is a gossip. So he told Derek who told Meredith. She of course told Cristina because they have this weird friendship thing going on. Cristina may have told Owen who told Teddy. But Teddy already knew so circle closed."

They both laughed. "You have it all figured out! So you don't care?" Callie was a bit surprised. Given the current situation she would've guessed that Arizona wanted to be very subtle.

"We couldn't have kept it a secret anyway. If we go back in and smile like you're smiling now, they would have noticed anyway. But maybe we can be not that obvious back at the hospital?"

"Of course and there's nothing to tell anyway, is it?" Callie winked. "We're taking it slow, remember? We haven't even been on a date."

"What about them?" Arizona pointed over her shoulder to the living-room.

"They will keep it a secret if you ask nicely with your shining blue eyes and you magic smile."

"You're a funny woman, Calliope Torres."

"Can we stay here for a while longer?" Callie asked because she enjoyed her alone time with Arizona. It was a magical evening beneath the Seattle night sky and the most beautiful woman by her side.

"Of course we can." Arizona agreed and let her head rest on Callie's shoulder. She looked at their intertwined fingers. In this moment Arizona knew what pure happiness was.

* * *

For the next week Arizona and Callie were on opposite shifts and it was starting to pull on their nerves. There they were, both single and having feelings for the other and there was literally no time to act on it. With Callie being an attending now both she and Arizona were head of their departments and it was taking all the time they had.

Today Callie had enough. She hadn't seen Arizona since the night on the porch and it wasn't working for her anymore. Texting wasn't enough. She missed the blonde and she had to do something about it. That was why she was standing in Chief Hunt's office right now, executing her plan.

"You need to do something about Robbins' and my call schedule."

"And why is that?" Owen was sitting at his desk with his arms crossed.

"We haven't seen each other since the party as we are on opposite shifts for a week now. I don't want to wail but you know the story and you've seen enough that night to know what's going on and that we need this."

"You know I don't take personal request regarding the call schedule." Owen played it out hard. She wanted to help them but he was the chief and therefor he had to stay professional.

"Owen, please. Just give us a few days. Two is enough. No one will ever know." Callie pleaded. She really needed this and she wouldn't leave until she got it.

"Okay, fine." Owen gave in. "But the schedule for next week is already out. I can't change it anymore, So it has to be the week after that, okay?"

"Thank you! I owe you." Callie now had a huge smile on her face. There would actually be some time for her and Arizona to meet. Looking forward to that she could get through another week of not seeing her and texting.

"You do, big time." Owen smiled weakly. "And you better hope that no one will complain. I have to move some things around and people won't like that."

"Just redirect them to me and I'll take care of it."

"Get out of here before I change my mind."

* * *

 **I miss you… -A**

Callie lay in bed reading when Arizona's text came in. She had the day shift while Arizona was on call tonight. She had to smile. The text was the most forward Arizona had been in the last couple of days. When they had texted it had been mostly about how their days had been. Now she was admitting to something.

 **Miss you too -C**

Only a few more days, she told herself. By now she had next week's call schedule and Owen had been gracious. For the whole week Arizona and Callie were on the same shifts. They were on call for two nights next week which meant they couldn't go out but Callie was already thinking about how to make those two nights into something special. Night shifts were usually not busy and about being there if something was happening.

 **Can't wait 'til next week. I really want to spend some time with you…**

There wasn't an answer from Arizona for a while and Callie thought she had stretched it too far. A moment later she knew she had been wrong. She got a 911 page from Hunt and jumped out of bed. She didn't change out of her UCSF hoodie and her sports pants and rushed to her car. Arriving at the hospital she ran directly to the ER and grabbed one if the yellow gowns. Her purse she threw behind the nurses' station.

"Trauma room 2, Doctor Torres." The nurse said and Callie made her way over there.

"What have we got?" She asked rushing through the door before even seeing the patient on the table. Hunt was in the room. Arizona as well. And then Callie saw why. "Oh my god…"

"John Doe, probably 8 to 10 years old. Multiple fractures, internal bleeding and probably a concussion. Shepherd is paged but we can't wait 'til he gets here. We need to get control of the bleeding or this kid is dead before Nero even gets here."

Hunt gave Callie the run down with which little they knew.

"Parents?" Callie asked and looked at Arizona. Just now she saw how upset Arizona was. Then Callie looked at Owen for an answer. Owen shook his head "no". "Can someone make sure social services is called?"

"Of course Doctor Hunt." A nurse said and made a note in the boy's chart.

 _No parents. Perfect…_ Callie thought. "Do we have pictures yet?"

"Right leg is broken, so is his right arm. At least one rib is fractured but we weren't able to see much with all the blood in there. The rib may have punctured his lung."

"Where is Altman then?" Callie asked as they prepped the boy for transport to the OR.

"Altman is out of town. Cristina's paged directly to the OR." Owen explained while they quickly moved the gurney to the elevator.

Now Arizona barged in. "Yang? Are you kidding? She's a fifth year resident and this boy has one chance. One." Arizona wanted the best for her patient and that wasn't Yang in her opinion.

"C'mon Robbins. You know how good Cristina is and I bet Teddy's going on and on about her when you two talk. She just can't shut up on how great a talent she is."

"If something happens it's on you, Hunt." Arizona said to bring an end to the discussion. Callie wanted to comfort her but she knew it wasn't the right time. The anger Arizona was feeling right now was the one thing that would help her through the surgery. She could break down afterwards. In Callie's arms if she wanted to.

"What's the plan here?" Callie asked Arizona.

"We open him up and Yang takes care of the bleed – hopefully." The last word she said sarcastically and shot Hunt a meaningful glare. "When that's done, we see what's going on with his ribs and if you need to fix it, Callie."

"What about his arm and leg? Give me his films." Callie took them from Arizona and held them against the elevator light. "The leg I can fix with a simple cast after surgery. It should heal on its own. The arm is worse. I can see bone fragments in there."

"I don't know if he's stable enough to have it done right now, Callie. Prepare to do it but we have to see how he's taking the rest, okay?"

It made sense. The arm could be fixed later if the boy wasn't strong enough tonight. Callie would improvise if necessary. Cristina had already scrubbed when they arrived in the OR. Arizona, Callie and Owen scrubbed as well and went to work. There was none of Arizona's skepticism during surgery. There was no room for it and Cristina really did her best. They weren't talking except for necessary medical instructions. It took all their focus to save the boy. It turned out the rib had indeed punctured the lung which caused the massive bleed. Cristina was able to repair the lung and Callie stabilized the rib so it could heal over the next few weeks. The boy's vitals were stable after Cristina's repair so Arizona decided he could take the repair of his right arm.

"Hunt and Yang, you can scrub out. Your work is done here. Good job." Arizona said without looking up. She was closing the incision on the boy's chest.

"You sure?" Hunt asked because he was concerned.

"Yep. He's stable and it's crowded in here. I can fix the arm alone while Arizona assists." Callie answered for Arizona who didn't need any questioning of her decisions. Callie could tell that Arizona was barely hanging on. It would be easier if it was just the two of them in the OR. Callie could fix the arm by herself but she wanted to keep Arizona occupied until she was finished. These cases were always hard on Arizona and Callie wanted to be there when the weight of saving the boy's life would finally fell from her.

The repair took another 45 minutes and the nurse took care of the boy afterwards. He would be transferred to the ICU on the peds floor for further observation. Callie and Arizona stood side by side at the scrub sink and scrubbed out without saying anything. It wasn't until they both had dried their hands that Callie spoke.

"Follow me, will you?" Callie said. She knew that Arizona wasn't okay so she didn't ask if she was. She also knew that Arizona would break down right there if she said anything related to the case. She wanted to prevent the situation they had before right in this spot when she had found Arizona on the floor with her back to the sink.

Arizona just nodded and followed Callie who made her way to an on-call room. She opened the door and let Arizona go in first. Callie locked the door behind herself so the two of them wouldn't be disturbed. Callie knew Arizona wouldn't let go if there was the chance someone else would see it.

"Come here." Callie said and held out her hand. Arizona stepped towards Callie and into her now open arms. Callie rubbed Arizona's back in slow circles. "It's okay. You can let go now. I'm right here for you."

That was when Callie heard vague sobs. Callie didn't let go until the sobbing stopped. Arizona freed herself from the hug and looked at Callie who immediately wiped away Arizona's tears. Her eyes were red from all the crying.

"Callie?" Arizona asked with an unsteady voice.

"Yes?"

"I know you're not on call but can you stay with me for a while?" It took Arizona everything to ask what she had asked. She wanted to be strong. She didn't want Callie to see her broken on the floor but she already had broken down in front of her. And she really didn't want to be alone.

"I'm not going anywhere. I promise." Callie reached for Arizona's hand. "Come here." She said and led Arizona to one of the beds. Callie climbed in and held up the blanket as a sign for Arizona to join her. Arizona didn't move. Something held her back.

"I know and it's not about that. Let me be there for you, Arizona." Callie assured her.

Arizona climbed under the cover with her back to Callie and her arm under her head. Callie put her arm around Arizona and pulled her close.

"Thank you, Calliope." Arizona whispered and closed her eyes. It was hard not to think about the boy in the ICU and the fact that someone -probably a family member – had abused this kid so hard that he needed to crawl to the ER by himself and in need of an emegency surgery. This was one of the few occasions she regretted being a peds surgeon. But Callie's body against her back felt good and helped to ease the pain she was in.

With every minute passing, Callie felt Arizona's breathing calming down until Arizona finally fell asleep in her arms. Callie knew Arizona was in a bad place right now and there wouldn't be a chance to hold Arizona soon after this because they were taking things slow. But holding Arizona in her arms felt incredible. Callie knew it was where she belonged and she would wait for Arizona to get there too. Callie knew they belonged together.

With that thought Callie drifted off to sleep as well.


	8. Chapter 8

Callie woke up first. Both she and Arizona had slept through most of the night without Arizona's pager going off. It was a good sign because it meant that there had been no problems with the boy they had operated on. She was sure Arizon would go check on him before she left and Callie would on the start of her shift.

Callie didn't know if Arizona would freak when she woke up next to Callie but she decided it would be worse if she woke up alone and with Callie gone. Arizona would thought that Cllie abandonned her because she had shown weakness last night. To Callie it had not been weakness. She admired how commited Arizona was to all of her cases and how much she cared about the well-being of each patient. Callie knew that she herself would never be able to make it through one week in that field of medicine. She wasn't as strong as Arizona. She wasn't even close to being strong enough to handle very sick kids every day. In Callie's opinion, Arizona was more than allowed to break down once in a while.

Callie looked at sleeping blonde next to her. Arizona looked beautiful in her peaceful sleep. Looking at her after all they had been through in the last couple of weeks and especially last night, Callie knew she was falling in love. She couldn't help it.

"Good morning beautiful." She said when Arizona stirred as she slowly woke up. Arizona turned so she now lay on her back and opened her eyes. Slowly she looked at Callie when she noticed that she wasn't alone in the bed.

"Morning." Arizona said, not really knowing how she got to the on-call room and into bed with Callie. She lifted the covers and saw that she was fully clothed in her navy scrubbs. Relief rushed through her. If she had sex last night, it would be likely for her to be naked.

"We didn't have sex last night." Callie confirmed to assure Arizona that nothing had happened between them. It was okay for her that Arizona was a little freaked out by the given situation. Sleeping in the same bed -even fully clothed- wasn't exactly what they had meant by taking things slow. But then again, last night had been an extraordinary situation which hd accquired extraordinary messures.

Slowly it all came back to Arizona: The littly boy who had come to the ER by himself barely standing up. The 911 page she had gotten while she had been standing at the nurses station on the paeds floor texting with Callie. The mess in the trauma room and finally the complex surgery she had performed with Callie and the others. When she remembered what had happened after surgery, she sat up on the bed, facing the door instead of Callie. She was ashamed she had allowed herself to break down like she had.

Callie moved a bit closer to the edge of the bed where Arizon was now sitting and brought herself up on her elbow. She put her hand on Arizona's shoulder but Arizona didn't react to the soft touch of Callie's hand.

"It's okay." Callie began. "You're allowed to break down and when you do, it's one of the many things I'm here for."

"To see me cry like a baby?" Arizona asked sarcastically without turning around. Why would Callie stay for that?

"To be there for you when you need someone to hold you after going through something like that."

Arizona kept quiet.

"I'm in this, Arizona. And not just for the pretty days with butterflies and stuff. I'm in this for everything and that means I'm not going to leave when you feel like crying. I'm sorry it ended up with us sleeping in the same bed when we decided to take things slow but I'm not sorry for taking care of you in the first place. It's what I do."

Arizona turned around with a grin on her face. Arizona leaned over to Callie who closed her eyes right before her lips touched Arizona's. Arizona was convinced by Callie's words. "Thank you, Calliope."

"You know I would do anything for you, Arizona."

Callie took a quick look at her watch which didn't stay unregistered by Arizona.

"If I leave right now I can hit the shower at my place before my shift starts." Callie explained. "I now it's not romantic or anything to jump out of bed like that but I really need to freshen up before I start my shift."

"Well you could shower at my place. It's closer and we'd be able to cuddle for 10 more minutes." Arizona offered with a cheeky smile.

Callie was surprised by her offer. "You want to cuddle? And me to shower at your place?" Callie made the latter sound suggestive on purpose. She took her chances.

Arizona laughed and pulled up the pillow to throw it at Callie. "You know what I meant."

"Come here already." Callie pulled Arizona back in bed and cuddled up behind her just like they had spent the night before.

"This is nice." Callie closed her eyes and let her head rest against Arizona's shoulder. She pulled Arizona a bit closer to her body.

"It is." Arizona agreed. Callie's arm around waiste felt wonderful. This right here was what she had wanted. She knew, it was bad to compare but she seldom had had this with Leah. There had been many nights when all she had wanted was to cuddle and fall asleep eventually. Instead she had been in bed alone tossing and turning until her body gave in and sleep took over. Of course Callie and she were still at the beginning but Callie already knew what Arizona needed. Arizona knew Callie was all she needed in her life.

"I hate to break this up but we better get going if you still want that shower." Arizona said a quarter of an hour later without moving. She could stay here in bed with Callie all day. Everything was fine in this moment.

"Okay."

They both got up, straightened their clothes and hair to at least look a bit presentable for the world that was waiting behind the door.

At Arizona's place Callie was handed a fresh towel and she went to take a quick hot shower to regain her energy for the day. Arizona greeted her with a cup of freshly brewed coffee back in the kitchen when Callie was done.

"Oh my god, you're the best girl…" Callie bit her tongue but the harm was already done.

"Girlfriend?" Arizona asked calmly.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" Callie apologized. She hadn't been thinking but in her heart it was how she felt – kind of. There was no other woman she wanted to date and she was ready to commit to Arizona.

"Don't worry, it's fine. I know I will be the best girlfriend." Arizona stretched out her hand and Callie took the coffee. "Here, take your coffee."

"Thank you." Callie said with a smile and took a sip. The coffee brought her back to life entirely.

"I'm sorry I ruined you good night's sleep lst night. Your bed must be a whole lot more comfortable than this on-call beds."

"You didn't ruin anything. I slept very well in the arms of a beautiful woman. What else is there to wish for?"

"You're cute." Arizona admitted wth a smile.

"…and late for work. I'm sorry I have to head back to the hospital." Callie's voice sounded sad. There was nothing more she wanted as to stay.

"Just two more days, right? Then we're on the same schedule and we can spend some real time together."

"I'm looking forward to that." They had not agreed on anyhing in particular but it was nice to know that Arizona as well wanted to spend her free time with Callie.

"I hope you have a quiet shift, Calliope."

"Me too. Have a nice day, Arizona."

They hugged briefly as they said good-bye and then Callie headed off to work.

* * *

Callie put the basket into her car and closed the hood of her trunk. Everything was in place for her date with Arizona. The two of them finally had time off together and had yet to be at the hospital for the night shift which meant they had all day for themselves. Callie had promised to pick up Arizona at 9:30 am at her place but she had not told her where she would take her. She wanted it to be a surprise and she knew it would be.

When Callie pulled up in front of Arizona's building, Arizona opened the car door only a minute later. She had stood in her livingroom full of excitement, looking out of the window and awaiting Callie's arrival impatiently.

"Hi there!" Arizona greeted when she closed the door and put the seat belt on.

"You ready to spend some really great time?"

"Can't wait. Where are we going again?" Arizona asked with a smirk.

"Nice try, missy!" Callie laughed and poked Arizona in her side. "You have to wait and see."

"Sorry, you can't blame me for trying!"

Arizona lay her hand on Callie's thigh to be connected to her. She wanted to touch her, to feel her. They had spent too many days barely seeing each other when they should have been spending as much time together as they could to build their relationship. By the touch of Arizona's hand, Callie smiled to herself and put her hand on Arizona's.

"I'm so happy you were able to talk Hunt into changing our schedules. I was so annoyed by these opposite shifts and not seeing you." Arizon admitted.

"Yah, you tell me. I went all bitchy on him in his office because I couldn't take it anymore." Callie confessed. "I missed you." Callie allowed herself a quick glanze at the beautiful blonde beside her on the passenger's seat. This day she looked especially beautiful. There was this sparkle in her already shiny blue eyes and a smile on her face Callie hadn't seen on her before.

"I missed you, too." Arizona closed her eyes for a bit, so she could wrap her mind about the fact that she was going on a date with the beautiful Calliope Torres.

They spent the rest of the drive in a comfortable silence with their hands touching all the time. When Callie finally pulled over her car on a graveled road between two trees, Arizona's smile vanished.

All Arizona could see was trees and grass. They had driven on the small graveled road surrounded by trees for a while before Callie had parked the car. The road actually ended right there below Callie's car but there was a small path leading further into the forest. They were surrounded by nothing but pure and raw nature.

"I hate camping…" She mumbled.

"What was that?" Callie asked because she had not understood. She was irritated by the look on the blonde's face.

"Nothing." Arizona lied because she didn't want to ruin their date right on the spot.

Callie got out of the car and went over to Arizona's side. She opened the door and held out her hand.

"May I?" Callie smiled although she still was confused by the look on the other woman's face.

Arizona was amazed by Callie's traditional behavior. She really wanted to make this date special and perfect. Arizona took Callie's hand and got out of the car. After taking the basket and a blanket from the trunk, the two women made their way further into the forest. After a short walk the trees started to grew out and grass took over. Another 200 meters and Callie suddenly stopped at a cross-way of two forest tracks.

"From here on, I'm going to blindfold you." Callie explained.

"What?" It was not that Arizona didn't trust Callie. She absolutely did but somehow she still had a bad feeling about not being able to see in the middle of nowhere.

"If you're not okay with it, I don't have to."

"No, no. It's fine. I trust you." Arizona assured Callie. _Suck it up, Robbins!_

So Callie blindfolded Arizona and took her hand to guide her on their last few meters aside from the path. Callie was going to a place where people usually didn't go. For their first date, Callie wanted not to be disturbed by people walking by every so often. She herself had found this place by coincidence on a Sunday a long time ago. Since then she had never taken anyone here.

"We're there." Callie explained when they reached her favorite spot. "I'm going to take the blindfold off, okay?"

Arizona nodded, unable to speak. She was excited and nervous at the same time. It had been a long time since she had been on a really nice date. Leah and she never really had done that. They had started off with not meaningful sex and had gone from that.

When Callie took off the blindfold, for a few seconds Arizona was dazzled by the sunlight. When her vision became clearer she saw the beautiful lake with it's clear blue water in front of them. Arizona could see a mother duck with little ducklings in the distance. She had to smile because she remembered the story Callie had told her from her childhood. There was a small grassy spot right where Arizona and Callie were standing, just big enough to spread out the blanket. Otherwise they were surrounded by trees and shrubbery.

"This place is beautiful!" Arizona was astonished and put her arm around Callie and laid her head on Callie's shoulder to cherish the moment. This was anything but camping. This was going to be the most romantic picnic ever.

"You like it?"

"Are you kidding? Calliope, this is amazing." She placed a peck on Callie's cheek.

"Help me spread out the blanket, will you?" Callie held it up and Arizona took the other two corners so they both could spread it on the grass below them. They sat down and Arizona took off her shoes to be more comfortable. Callie pulled over the basket and took out strawberries and blueberries, mini-pancakes and waffles. She then pulled out a bottle of sparkling wine and two glasses.

"When did you have time to prepare all of this?" Arizona said with large eyes. She was so in awe with Callie and all the thinking she had done to make this date as special as possible.

"I just made time. I wanted this to be the most exceptionally date you ever had."

 _God, could she be more awesome right now?_ "I already do, Calliope."

Callie handed Arizona her glass and held up her own. "To us and hopefully many dates to come" She toasted.

"This is amazing. I can't believe you did all this for me." Arizona was honest here. She didn't know why an amazing woman like Callie would even go on any date with her, let alone a date like this.

"Arizona, you're already the most amazing woman I have ever met in my life and I didn't even get to fully know you. And I know we kind of had a bumpy start and all. But I just wanna show you how much this means to me… how much you mean to me."

Callie's words almost made Arizona cry. She was moved by how Callie was feeling about her. Arizona wasn't used to being appreciated like this. Callie noticed that Arizona had gone all sentimental on her and she took her hand and gave it a little squeeze.

"I'm glad I didn't scare you away with my baggage."

"Everyone has baggage. I do too. We're not 15 anymore. So what? We have a history. That doesn't scare me. My past was all over the hospital and you're still talking to me."

"How could I not talk to you?" Arizona asked but didn't expect an answer to her question as it was more meant to ask herself than Callie.

As the date proceeded, Arizona and Callie talked and tried out Callie's provisions. At some point Arizona lay down and crossed her arms under her head. Callie felt comfortable enough to lie down and let her head rest on Arizona's waist.

"You know, earlier when we arrived, I saw this duck family…" Arizona began.

Callie who knew what Arizona was about to say.

"You're still going to laugh about my childhood trauma?" Callie pretended to be serious and lifted herself up on her elbow.

"C'mon. It's your fault you told me that story."

"Yah, to get closure after all those years. You're working with kids every day. I would've expected more from you, Arizona." But Callie couldn't be serious any longer and started to laugh.

Arizona joined in and laughed. "I hate you, you know that?"

"I really doubt that." Callie said with a smirk and moved a little closer to Arizona. She leaned in but stopped right in front of her face so that their lips almost touched.

 _I could never hate you, Calliope._ Arizona's heart raced and her mouth ran dry. She wanted Callie so badly that she could barely breathe. Arizona thought she was lucky to already be on the floor because Callie definitely made her legs give in.

"Kiss me." Arizona whispered and closed her eyes, waiting impatiently for Callie to do as she had asked.

Callie looked at Arizona, feeling the tension that she had built between them. She had to smile about the fact that she was able to made Arizona feel like that. Callie closed her eyes and let her lips find Arizona's. She loved how soft they felt against hers and the way every of their kiss felt like fireworks.

 _This is indeed the most romantic and perfect date,_ Arizona thought.


	9. Chapter 9

Arizona and Callie were halfway through their night shift and they were still on a high from their date which made working a lot easier.

The ortho floor was quiet that night. All of Callie's patients were non-critical and asleep most of the night. There was one old lady who was in for a hip replacement and up a few times every night due to bad dreams. Each time the nurse would go in, tell the old lady where she was and that she had dreamed. Only that one time Callie did it herself because her patient seemed extremly confused.

When Callie went into the patient's room, she sat down on the bed.

"Mrs. Harris?" Callie asked and took the old woman's hand.

"Sarah?" Mrs. Harris asked, being confused about where she was and who was in her room.

"Mrs. Harris, it's me, Doctor Torres." Callie introduced herself although she had done it the very first day of Mrs. Harris' stay.

"What are you doing in my appartment, Doctor? Is anyone hurt?"

"You're in the hospital, Mrs. Harris. I had to replace your hip a few days ago." Callie explained. "You had a bad dream."

"Oh, okay then. Thanks, Doctor."

"You need anything?"

"I don't think so, dear. I'm fine."

"Good night, Mrs. Harris." Callie said and left the room, hoping Mrs. Harris would sleep through the rest of the night.

* * *

Arizona's night was different. Although most of the kids were sleeping quietly, there was one newborn in the NICU which had arrived to this world early and with underdeveloped lungs. Therefore the little girl needed to be monitored closely through the night. Arizona said in a chair next to the incubator with her feet pulled up and her back to the door. Such situations were always difficult to handle and Arizona hoped the little girl would make it through her first and critical night in her life.

Suddenly Arizona felt someone touch her shoulders. She turned her head around to find Callie standing behind her.

"Hey." Arizona whispered although it was unlikely that she would wake the little girl.

"Hey." Callie gently massaged Arizona's shoulders and neck. Arizona closed her eyes and leaned back against Callie's body. It felt good to be with her. Callie had become her place to come to rest over the last few weeks and Arizona didn't know what she would do without her.

"How is she?"

"Still critical but she's a fighter. If she makes it through the night, there's a good chance she'll make it." Arizona replied. "And I really need her to make it."

"I know. There has just been too much lately." Callie kissed the top of Arizona's head and kept massaging her neck. "I can take over for a while if you want to nap. You look tired."

"I don't know. I shouldn't leave her side."

Callie understood. She knew Arizona trusted her medically but she also knew how Arizona felt. The tiny humans were always special to her and she wanted to take care of them herself – even if it meant staying up all night.

"But maybe you can stay here with me for a while? I mean only if you don't have to be on your floor."

"I don't. I checked on Mrs. Harris and she is taken care of for now. I'd love to stay with you." Callie looked for a second chair to sit next to Arizona.

For a descent amount of time the two women sat there in silence, holding hands and watching the newborn girl. They were anxious that her vitals could change every minute.

Arizona tried to think of something else and her mind went to the perfect date she and Callie had shared earlier that day. Arizona was still in awe with everything Callie had planned. And then it began to dawn on her.

"Callie?" She asked without looking at the other woman. Her eyes were still on the incubator.

"Yes?"

"I would really like to be your girlfriend." Arizona didn't know what she had been waiting for. It had seemed to be the right thing to do at the time. Now all she wanted to do was to be with Callie in a committed relationship.

"What?" Callie turned to face Arizona.

"Calliope Torres, do you want to be my girlfriend." Arizona asked, looking at Callie this time.

"I don't understand. What happened to wanting to take things slow?" Callie asked, being confused. Not that she didn't want to be with Arizona but it kind of came out of nowhere. Their date had been beautiful and Callie had done a lot of thinking about how she should plan the date and still keep her promise to not cross a certain line. She had thought it had been enough for Arizona but maybe Callie had taken it too slow.

"I know this isn't some big romantic gesture and maybe I should've done it that way. But Callie, I really like you and I got the feeling that you like me too. When I'm with you I feel like home. I don't know what I have been waiting for. Maybe it was this moment right here but I think I'd like to take things a little less slow from now on."

"Arizona…"

"Oh God, I pushed it too far, didn't I?" Arizona interrupted.

"Arizona Robbins, I would be honored to be your girlfriend." Callie said with a smile and leaned over to seal it with a passionate kiss. Callie couldn't believe it, Arizona Robbins was now her girlfriend. The woman she had had a crush on but never had she imagined that she would actually be with her someday.

"I'm happy." Arizona stated and took Callie's hand in hers. "Looks good, doesn't it?"

"Everything I wished for was to be with you and look at us now." Callie pulled Arizona's hand to her lips so she could place a kiss on the back of Arizona's hand.

Right in that moment Callie's pager went off. "Urgh, you got to be kidding me." Callie pulled out her pager and saw that the nurse on her floor had paged her 911.

"911 on Mrs. Harris. Sorry, I got to go." Callie apologized and gave Arizona a sloppy kiss before heading out.

* * *

 **Callie, I'm worried. Pls answer if you read this.**

Arizona had not heard from Callie in hours and their shift was about to end. As much as Arizona wanted to go look for Callie, she didn't dare to leave the newborn girl by herself in the NICU. She wanted to be there if anything happened. _Maybe she got pulled into an emergency surgery_ , Arizona thought. In that case Callie would definitely text her back as soon as she could.

"Morning, Robbins." Karev greeted Arizona when he entered the NICU to start his shift. "How's she doing?"

"I watched her the whole night. Vitals were and still are stable. She is a real fighter, this one. Yang wanted to check on her this morning about her lungs." Arizona said and yawned.

"You should get some sleep."

"You okay here on your own?"

"I am. Don't worry. She will still be alive when you start your shift tonight. I promise."

"Thanks, Alex." Arizona said and turned to the door. Before leaving the room she turned back around. "By the way, Alex?"

"Yah?"

"Have you seen Callie by any chance?" She asked. "She was with me last night and got paged 911. I haven't seen her since."

"No, I haven't. Maybe she went home right afterwards?" Alex suggested because he didn't know it would be unlikely that Callie had left without saying anything – not after the moment they had shared last night.

"Yah, maybe she did." Arizona decided to leave it at that. There was no need for Karev to know the details. Word would get around soon enough. "Call me if anything happens."

Arizona didn't wait for an answer and left the NICU. On her way to the elevator she checked her phone once more. Still nothing. Arizona started to worry. She knew Callie would have come to her if she left the hospital. But where was she? Arizona took the elevator to the Ortho unit and asked around for Callie but the night nurses had already left and the others had not seen her. When Arizona asked what the emergency had been last night, she was told that Mrs. Harris had arrested in her sleep and could not have been resuscitated. Now Arizona knew where to look for Callie.

Arizona knocked twice on the door of the on-call room she and Callie had spent the night in a few days ago. When there was no answer, Arizona carefully opened the door and looked in. There she was on one of the beds, a tissue in her hand and her eyes on the floor.

"May I come in?"

Again Callie didn't answer. She just sat there sobbing. Arizona stepped in and closed the door behind her. She kept leaning at the door.

"You want to talks about what happened last night?" Arizona tried again. She was worried.

"It's just not fair." Callie said. Arizona moved towards her and sat down on the bed next to her. She slowly rubbed Callie's back to make her feel better. In fact, Callie stopped sobbing after a few seconds.

"You heard what happened?"

Arizona nodded. "The nurse told me."

"A hip replacement. That's what she was in for. She was fine beside that. She was fine when I left her." Callie lowered her head again. This loss hit her more than usual. To her it seemed just wrong that an old woman had been able to grew 82 years old and then had to die being in the hospital for a hip replacement.

"I'm sorry you lost her, Calliope. It's not your fault."

"It's just not fair." Callie repeated.

"Tell me what you need."

"I think I need to go home and get some sleep or at least hide under the covers."

It made Arizona sad to see Callie like that but she didn't know what to do. "You can do all that at my place if you don't want to be alone."

"No, it's not about you but I just want to be at my place in my bed."

"Yah, I understand. Let me at least drive you, okay?" Arizona offered although there wasn't a chance she would let Callie drive by herself. She was in no condition to drive.

Callie nodded in agreement. "Okay."

They walked to the parking lot holding hands. It was not how they had pictured the moment of them holding hands for the first time but it was just fine how it was. Callie got into Arizona's car and Arizona drove her home.

"You want me to come up with you?" She asked when she had parked her car in front of Callie's building.

"Would you? Just for a little while?"

"Of course."

So Callie took Arizona up to her apartment and got rid of her jacket and shoes.

"You want me to make you something to eat?" Arizona offered because she saw how exhausted Callie was.

"Thanks but actually, I think I just want to lie down."

Arizona nodded. She understood. It had been an eventful night.

"Would you spoon me?" Callie asked, being a bit shy. Of course they had done it before when they had spent the night in the on-call room but it had been more spontaneous then. This time Callie had to ask for it if she wanted to be held by Arizona. She knew Arizona was too thoughtful to impose on Callie.

Arizona smiled because she was kind of glad Callie wanted her to be there with her. She herself would have been reserved because she didn't want to push too far. Their relationship was still fragile and Arizona wanted to respect Callie's feelings.

"I would love to." Arizona said and took the hand Callie was offering. Callie led Arizona to her bedroom and started to take some things from her closet.

"Here." Callie handed Arizona some comfortable pants and a shirt. "If you want to change into something more comfortable. Also it might not be quiet your size."

Arizona thankfully took the clothes she was offered. "It will do. Thanks."

"I give you some privacy to change. I'll be in the bathroom changing." Callie left the room so Arizona could change. While changing she noticed she was getting nervous. She was actually spending the night – although it wasn't really night time – with her new girlfriend for the first time. To her the one night in the on-call room didn't really count. That had not been planned and they had not been girlfriends then. Now Callie had invited her to stay over, to spend the night in her very own bed.

Callie was nervous too. For the third time she tried to wash it off with cold water but it didn't help. She told herself that there wasn't anything to be nervous about. It was just sleeping together in the same bed. Nothing more. After repeating the mantra for a few more times Callie left the bathroom to see if Arizona was ready. She knocked on her bedroom door.

"Come in. I'm ready." Arizona confirmed.

Callie almost lost her mind seeing Arizona in her oversized clothes. She looked cute and sexy at the same time. Callie couldn't help herself and pulled Arizona into a tight hug and kissed her passionately.

"What was that for?"

"You looking cute in my clothes." Callie smirked. "I left you a spare toothbrush in the bathroom and a clean towel next to the sink."

"Spare toothbrush, huh?" Arizona joked.

Callie held up her hands. "There were two in the pack when I bought them."

"Just kidding. I'll be right back."

When Arizona came back to the bedroom, there was just a small light burning and Callie was already under the covers. When she heard Arizona approaching she held the blanket up to invite her into the bed. Arizona gladly accepted and curled up behind Callie and put her arm around her girlfriend. A barely noticeable laugh escaped her lips.

Callie turned her head to see what was going on.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to."

"What is it?"

"I was just thinking that I'm the luckiest person in the world."

And why is that?"

"Because my girlfriend is Calliope Torres and I'm cuddling with her in bed."

Callie didn't respond but moved in closer with Arizona and let her hand rest on the arm around her body. It was where she belonged. Slowly Callie and Arizona drifted into the dream world, holding each other.

* * *

"Arizona?"

 _What is that noise?_

"Arizona!"

 _Who is calling my name? I'm sleeping!_

"Arizonaaaa!"

Arizona woke up, her hear racing. It had not been in her dreams. Someone actually was calling her name. Now she realized. She was at Callie's and it was her who was calling for her. Arizona jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom where Callie supposedly was.

"What the…?" In front of the shower there were a few blood stains. Through the shower curtain, Arizona saw Callie sitting on the ground. There was some more blood inside the shower.

"Oh my god. What happened?" Arizona didn't know what to do. Medically it was easy, of course. But there was a very naked Callie in the shower and Arizona couldn't help her without seeing her like that. They weren't ready for that. She wasn't ready for that.

"It's nothing. I cut myself shaving my legs. It just looks that bad because of the water and I couldn't reach my towel without bleeding all over my bathroom floor."

"Let me look at it and then I'll decide how bad it is." Arizona moved towards the shower, still not knowing how to handle this particular situation.

"Just hand me my towel and then you may look." Callie instructed her.

 _Of course. It was that simple._ _I'm just too stupid._ Arizona thought and handed Callie her towel. When she pulled back the shower curtain, Arizona almost tripped. Even with the towel wrapped around most of her body, Arizona saw enough to let her heart skip a beat. Callie had the most beautiful and soft looking tanned skin Arizona had ever seen in her life. She could just imagine what the rest of the Latina's body looked like.

"You done staring at me?" Callie joked. "Babe, I promise to show you more of it but can focus on my little problem here?"

Arizona blushed and looked away. "Oh God. I'm so sorry, Callie."

"It's fine. If you're not allowed to look who would?"

"Sit down again, please." Arizona changed the subject. "Where's the cut?"

Callie turned her leg so that Arizona could take a look. Callie had been right. It was basically nothing.

"Where do you keep your medical supplies? It's just a little cut but I want to disinfect the wound and then put a patch on it."

"Don't you think you're overreacting a bit?" Arizona shot her a look that made Callie give in.

"Behind you. Second drawer."

Arizona took out the medical supplies and took care of Callie's cut. She made sure everything was perfectly fixed and then placed a soft kissed next to the band-aid.

"All done." Arizona held out a hand to help Callie get up. Callie thanked her with a kiss.

"I have the best girlfriend ever." She said and pulled Arizona in for a hug.

"Urg, you're still wet!" Arizona pretended to be shocked and pushed Callie away.

"Sorry! You want breakfast or lunch?" Callie offered.

"I'd love to. Just let me take a shower first."

"I go and put some clothes on and get things going in the kitchen. Just join me when you're ready." As much as she wanted to hop into that shower with Arizona, she knew it was too soon. So she gave Arizona some space and left the room.


End file.
